


among the tall trees

by alittlestitious



Series: among the tall trees [1]
Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, Camping, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-13
Updated: 2016-11-23
Packaged: 2018-08-08 10:50:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7754788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alittlestitious/pseuds/alittlestitious
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tobin and Christen have been best friends since Christen tattled on Tobin. At the weekend of their graduation, Tobin decides to drag Christen out into the wilderness for some best friend bonding time before they go to separate colleges at opposite sides of the country.</p><p>High School/College AU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In light of things that happened today, I decided to post this. This would be a short story, probably five or so chapters. Little less angsty than the other story I posted, so hopefully this helps people today.

"Tobin!" The sharp voice of the forward making her look up. "That's not where that goes." Tobin slowly lowers the tent pole. "Tobin, I thought you went camping before?"

"Yeah, when I was three. I could barely walk let alone remember how to set up a tent," Tobin says as she stands up and watch the small defender set up their camp. As it was their last weekend before they head to separate colleges, Tobin thought it was a brilliant idea to go camping up in the dessert just the two of them. So they packed up their stuff and headed out to Joshua Tree.

"Why don't you go..." Christen looks around their campsite trying to find something for Tobin to do. They've already unpacked everything from Tobin's jeep. "Go start the fire."

Tobin looks at her unsure, but obeys.

Christen sighed in relief as she continues to put up their tent. It was hard seeing as she was one short girl trying to put a 4-person tent, but she manages. She steps back and admires Her handy when work. Tobin was useless when it came to the tents. She looks over to Tobin and sees her crouching by the fire pit, but there was no fire. She looks down at her wrist before face palming. She doesn't wear a watch. "Tobin...?" She asks confused as she walks over to the midfielder. "What are you doing?"

Tobin was crouched next to the fire pit, her tongue out as she spun a twig into one of the bigger fire woods. She was so focused on trying to start a fire that when Christen placed a hand on her shoulder she jumped, hurling the twig across the camp site. She looked at it forlornly as the twig landed on the other side of their site.

"What are you doing?" Christen implores again.

Tobin gave her a 'what-does-it-look-like-I'm-doing' look. "You told me to start a fire."

Christen laughs as she walks over to their bin of necessities. "Yeah we have matches and lighter fluid." She takes it out and starts the fire herself.

Tobin glares at her. "Why didn't you tell me that in the first place?" She shows Christen her phone, where a video was playing. "I even looked up how to start a fire on YouTube."

Christen just laughs harder.

-

-

-

The sun sets pretty quickly in the dessert. Once there was no longer daylight, the other campers have also quieted down. The two sat around the roaring campfire, wooden sticks filled with marshmallow, as they reminisced about their lifelong friendship.

"Put it out! Put it out!" Christen was screaming as Tobin waves the fireball marshmallow back and forth. Tobin wasn't paying attention and left her marshmallow in the fire for too long. "What are you doing Tobin? Blow on it!"

Tobin couldn't hear her over her screaming, so she threw the marshmallow on the dessert sand and started kicking sand over it.

 "Or do that, I guess," Christen says as she watch her friend frantically kicking the sand. "I think it's dead, Tobin."

Tobin stops kicking to see if the fire would erupt again. A little ember floated out and Tobin freaked out and kicked another handful of sand on the marshmallow. "Now, it's dead."

The two stood around the marshmallow in silence before Christen let out a loud guffaw. "Oh my god, this reminds me of how we met." Christen continues to laugh  laugh, as she remembers little Tobin "Oh god, you were such a pyro!"

Tobin shook her head while laughing. "And you were such a teacher's pet."

-

-

-

_Christen: Age 5_

_Tobin: Age 6_

_The bell rings and a swarm of little people from their classrooms runs to the little playground, like little bumblebees. Christen watches as her classmates all grab different toys to play with. A brown-haired little girl bumps into her, but Christen ignores it as she continues walking towards the grassy area with her book under her armpit. Christen prides in herself as being one of the only first graders that can read a chapter book. She settles herself underneath the tree as she gets lost in the world of Nancy Drew._

_She was so lost in her book that she didn't hear a couple of children, gathering just a couple of feet behind the tree. She was behind the tree, so they haven't seen her yet. She peaks around to see the same brown-haired girl who bumped into her along with two boys and another girl._

_"Tobin, I don't think that's a good idea," she hears one of the girls say._

_"Don't be such a baby," The brown-haired girl, Tobin, replies. "It'll be fine. I've done this a gazillion times."_

_Christen continues to watch them, curiously. They've gathered some leaves and twigs around them. Christen then watches as Tobin takes out a box of matches and she couldn't contain the gasp that left her mouth._

_Tobin immediately drops the box of matches in her hand when she heard the gasp. She looks up to see a girl behind a tree, staring at them. Tobin and Christen just stared at each other in silence until Christen opens her mouth._

" _I'm telling!" She screams booking it._

_Tobin immediately goes after her. She can see Christen ahead of her about to reach the concrete edge of the playground where a teacher was supervising them. She pushes her legs extra hard and tackles Christen from behind. Christen falls down and hits her forehead on the concrete._

_-_

_-_

_-_

Tobin reaches over and swipes a hand over the scar on Christen's forehead. Christen split her head open on the concrete when Tobin tackled her. She ended up having to get five stitches. "You didn't even turn me in though," Tobin points out.

"Yeah because I was too busy crying because you tackled me!" Christen says. "And that ended up being our first detention."

"But not our last," Tobin remembers. They got into all kinds of shenanigans when they were younger. Mostly, Tobin dragging Christen into trouble.

 "Definitely not our last," Christen says, laughing.

-

-

-

_Christen: Age 6_

_Tobin: Age 7_

_"I don't get it," Christen says frustrated as they sat in the library, doing their homework. The perils of skipping a grade, Christen was constantly confused and frustrated, but according to her mother, it was better than being bored._

_Tobin looks over to Christen. She's been done with their math homework and was just now, playing a video game underneath her desk on her DS. She saves her game and looks over to Christen. "You got this, Chris," she says. "You're thinking too hard."_

_Christen gives her a look one that Tobin has been accustomed to since they've been friends for two years. "It's math," she says emphatically. "It's supposed to make you feel stupid."_

_Tobin rolls her eyes. Christen's far from the stupid one in their class. One could argue, she's the smartest in their class since she's skipped a grade, but Christen usually feels like she's just playing catch-up. "No, you have this. It's the same thing we learned yesterday and you were doing fine with that."_

_Tobin can tell that her best friend was getting too frustrated. Christen still had her head down and was trying to work through her math homework. Tobin grabbed her pencil and started to disassemble it. She ripped up some paper and wadded it before stuffing it into the end of the barrel of the pencil. She blew at the other end of the pencil and watched as the spitball sailed across the table landing on Christen's shoulder. Christen of course didn't notice and instead kept her head down. She nudged Christen's foot with her own._

_Christen sharply looked up at her best friend with a glare. She can see the pencil in her friend's hand and she gave her a mischievous smile. Tobin handed it over and Christen wadded her own spitball. She aimed at their library attendant._

_The rules were, you can't hit the attendant, but rather the cork board behind it. But of course, Christen ended up hitting the attendant right at his forehead._

_The attendant looked at them and both Christen and Tobin raised their hands up in surrender._

_-_

_-_

_-_

"I still can't believe you talked us out of that detention," Christen says in awe. She deftly made her s'mores, trying to make sure her hands weren’t too sticky.

"Dude, the shit that was coming out of my mouth was crazy," Tobin says, shaking her head.

Christen laughs. "I wouldn't expect anything less actually. I mean the stuff that you came up with. By the time we got older, they became more realistic."

Tobin bump her shoulder with hers. "Hey, those lies got us out of everything."

Tobin laughs as she remembers another memory. One where a certain forward managed to score and tackle her at the same time. "Remember our first game against each other?"

Christen nods as she joins Tobin in laughter. "You were so mad at me after the game!"

-

-

-

_Christen: Age 8_

_Tobin: Age 9_

_Tobin and Christen were playing for different club teams. Mostly because Tobin forgot to remind her parents about tryouts for the club team that she and Christen were supposed to be on. Christen was nervous. This was the first time since she started playing with Tobin at the age of 6 that they wouldn’t be on the same team. Tobin was in her own little world as usual, she was juggling a ball between her knees while Christen was sitting on the grass, picking at the grass._

_Christen wasn’t paying attention as she tried to not psyche herself out, so of course Tobin lost control of the ball at that time and hits her on the head._

_“Tobin!” Christen yells at her friend. She reaches up and rubs where the ball hits her._

_“Sorry, CP,” Tobin says as she retrieves the ball. She bounces the ball on the pitch before continuing to juggle again. Tobin glances over to Christen, who was still picking at the grass, lost in her head. Even at a young age, Tobin recognizes that her and Christen are different the way they handle things. While Tobin would talk it out, Christen likes to remain in her head until she explodes. “You excited for the game? CP?” When she receives no response, she gently lobs the ball at Christen’s head._

_"Tobin!” Christen yells again, glaring at her friend. “You did that on purpose!”_

_“I asked you a question and you didn’t answer,” Tobin explains._

_“Oh,” Christen says quietly._

_“Are you excited for the game?” Tobin asks again._

_Christen smile was small. “Yep, very excited. Can’t wait to kick your butt out there, Heath.”_

_Tobin scoffs as she drops down on the grass next to her best friend. “You wish CP!” She gives Christen a small smile. “You’re gonna do great out there!”_

_Their coaches call them as the game was about to start. Christen tries to get into the zone as she listens to her coach give them a pep talk before the game. When the whistle blew, she got the ball from one of her teammates, before dribbling down the field._

_She keeps her focus on the goal and at the corner of her eye, she can see Tobin closing in on her. She swung her foot hard, feeling it clip onto someone before taking the shot. Of course it went in. Even with such scrawny legs, Christen had powerful shots. She celebrates and looks down to see Tobin lying on the ground, clutching her leg. It was bleeding slightly and there was already a bruise forming on her shins._

_Christen drops down next to her best friend. “This is why you wear shin guards!” She hisses to Tobin. Tobin just glares at her and Christen gives her an apologetic look._

_-_

_-_

_-_

Tobin points at the ridged mark on her leg. “I can’t believe your back swing gave me this.”

Christen reaches over and runs a thumb over it as well. Tobin can feel something in her chest that she couldn’t identify. “That’s karma for giving me this!” She points at her scar on the forehead, laughing. “I think my back swing is better now.”

“Yeah you don’t hit people with it anymore,” Tobin laughs. “I think if that happens now, you’ll shatter my leg.” 

Christen slaps her on the arm. “Bite your tongue! I don’t want us getting injured our first season in college.” Christen sighs and leans back on her chair, looking up at the sky. They were fairly high up the mountain and there was no moon, making the skies much brighter. The black sky was dotted with different swirls of the Milky Way. “It’s so beautiful out here.”

Tobin smiles as she watches her best friend smiling looking up at the stars. The last couple of weeks of their senior year have been stressful for the young forward. Instead of taking easy classes like her fellow seniors and best friends, Christen, ever the overachiever, decided to load up on AP classes as well as go to a community college nearby to take general education classes, plus playing for soccer for high school, club, and the national team, Christen had barely time for herself let alone this trip. Tobin suggested this trip and at first Christen refused because of all her responsibilities, but there was a weekend where everything was cancelled and Tobin loaded up her Jeep with camping stuff and dragged her out into the woods.

She couldn’t deny it was beautiful out in the wilderness. Just her, Christen, s’mores, and the stars, really she couldn’t ask for a better trip. She watches as the tension leaves Christen’s face as well as the pure joy of just being free from expectations, responsibilities, and the pressure, making her stomach feel a little fuzzy.

“Yeah, it’s really beautiful,” she says as she gazes at her best friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Like I said this will be short, less than ten chapters. I'll try to update as soon as possible. If you guys like it please comment, kudos, or if you want, talk to me on tumblr.


	2. two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, here's the next installment. It was longer than I expected so we only get to see one flashback. Sorry for the wait, school started and things are getting hectic around here.

“Do we have everything?” Christen asks as she swings her backpack on her back. She grabs a water bottle and slots it to the side of the backpack. “Let me check our list.”

Tobin groans as Christen reaches for her planner that was on the picnic table. Christen shoots her a look and Tobin just slumps against the chair. They decided to go out on a hike, but of course Christen had to be overly prepared, even creating a list of the things they need, even if it’s only a 4-mile hike.

Christen’s overly preparedness was usually a contention between them. She has a checklist that they have to go over before they pack and after they pack, even if the trip is spontaneous she’ll magically produce a list that they should follow. That usually irks the free-spirited Tobin, but she’s learned to live with her best friend’s quirks, especially after what happened in 6th grade.

-

-

-

_Tobin: Age 11_

_Christen: Age 10_

_Tobin was walking next to her best friend, juggling a soccer ball. Today was their first day of sixth grade, their first day of middle school. They spent the whole night on the phone as Christen tried to talk to Tobin about what outfit she should wear. Of course, Tobin really couldn’t help her, even at this age, Tobin is just a t-shirt and jeans gal._

_Christen was wearing a new outfit that she bought with her older sister and mother. She hoped that she could make more friends, not that Tobin is great, but other than soccer, they really have nothing in common. They also only have each other in two classes (if you count lunch). Christen is now in a gifted program so the only class they have together is P.E._

_Tobin glanced over to her friend, even if Tobin was focused on beating her juggling record, she’s still very intuned with her friend’s feeling. “How ya feeling, Press?”_

_Christen kept her head down low as they walked. She shrugged, her shoulders hunched. She doesn’t want to admit that she was scared, Tobin on the other hand looked as cool as a cucumber._

_Tobin kicked the ball up, snatched it in the air, and tucked it underneath her arm. “CP, there’s nothing to be scared off.” Christen stopped, her head still down. Tobin stopped as well. Tobin touched her arm gently. “Chris?” Christen looked up, her eyes watery. Tobin felt her breath catch. She hates it when Christen starts crying._

_“What if I don’t make any friends?” Christen asked, her voice cracking. “We only have one class together, Tobs!”_

_Tobin put an arm around Christen. “Hey, don’t cry. You’ll be great with all the nerds out there.”_

_Christen scoffed and pushed against Tobin. “Thanks, Toby.”  They kept walking, Tobin’s arm still around Christen. Christen didn’t want to say it out loud, but Tobin gives the best hugs._

_-_

_-_

_-_

_Christen took out her planner with her checklist and carefully lined up all her school supplies on her desk. Unlike the regular kids for their core classes (math, science, english, and history), the gifted kids are just in one classroom with different teachers coming in. The only time they get to be with the regular kids is for their P.E. classes. Christen looked around the classroom. There were only a couple of groups of students already in the classroom. She can see a group of girls playing with what looked like a tamagotchi._

_One of the girls looked up and she caught her eye. Christen looked down, embarrassed at being caught. She kept messing with her stuff, hoping that they won’t talk to her, but at the same time hoping they will talk to her. Christen can tell that she was the leader of the group. From the corner of her eye, she can see one of the girls was about to approach when the teacher called them in order._

_It turns out the one that Christen thought was the leader ended up sitting next to her. She glanced over at the desk to see that the girl was taking out her stuff as well. Christen had her checklist in front of her and she was going through each point, trying to ignore the girl._

_“What is that?” The girl asked her._

_Christen glanced over to her before continuing to look at her checklist. “My checklist that I want to complete for the day.”_

_The girl just gave her a weird look. “DId your mom do that for you?”_

_“No…” Christen said, slowly. The girl continued to scrutinize her before she turned to her right and started whispering to her companion. Christen could feel her face redden. She knows that they were talking about her._

_From then on, Christen was treated like a social pariah. She didn’t realize that her quirk of having everything planned out was such a foreign concept to middle schoolers. She was miserable; she wanted to get out of this gifted program if it means being ostracized. What makes it worst is Christen continued to get high marks, constantly beating out Charlene (the mean girl)._

_Tobin can tell in their daily walks to and from school that Christen was freaking out about something. She was always fidgeting; a hand was constantly at the hem of the shirt, fixing it, pulling on it. It drives Tobin nuts that she won’t tell her what’s going on._

_“Everything alright?” Tobin asked as they walked towards the practice fields. It’s become tradition for the two best friends to go to the fields across Christen’s house first to hang out and practice before going home._

_Christen nodded and plastered on a fake smile, which made it look more like a grimace than anything. She dropped her backpack at the edge of the field and waited for Tobin so that they can practice juggling._

_Tobin sighed in frustration, knowing that Christen won’t talk unless she really wanted to. She was a stubborn 10-year-old that’s for sure. Tobin passed the ball to her and Christen immediately hit it, albeit a little too hard making it fly over them. Tobin just ran after it. She passed it again to Christen. Once again, Christen hit the ball too hard, making Tobin run after it again. When she did it again the third time, Tobin just placed the ball at her feet and glared at her best friend, hands on her hips._

_“What’s going on with you, Chris?” Tobin asked._

_Christen made a frustrated noise at the back of her throat. “Nothing,” she said, angrily. Before grabbing her backpack and stomping to her house._

_Tobin watched her friend just stomp to her house. She knows she can’t do anything unless Christen tells her what’s going on. She kicked the ball up and just started juggling it, trying to take her mind off her best friend._

_-_

_-_

_-_

_The next day the walk to school was silent. Christen wanted to apologize, but didn’t know how to. Tobin didn’t want her to snap at her again. As usual, Tobin dropped Christen off at her classroom first before heading to her own class/_

_“Wait, Tobs!” Christen called as Tobin started walking away. Tobin turned around. “Um...we have a project to do at the end of the day. I don’t know how long it’ll be. Don’t wait up for me, okay?”_

_Tobin nodded and went to her classroom._

_Christen sighed and took a deep breath before heading into her own classroom. She kept her head low and her eyes downcast. She didn’t want to provoke Charlene into another attack. Of course that wasn’t the case and once again, Christen ended up teased and prodded mercilessly._

_-_

_-_

_-_

_Tobin gathered up her stuff and made her way to the gifted classroom. Even though, Christen told her not to wait up for her, she was going to. This was her best friend, she can’t tell her what to do. As she approached, the classroom, she can see a cluster of students, mostly girls gathered around another student. She was about to just ignore them when she heard her best friend’s voice._

_“Give it back!” Christen cried as she jumped, trying to grab a notebook. Being one of the youngest, unfortunately made Christen one of the shortest in the school. Tobin can see the other girls laughing as they kept throwing a notebook around. Tobin can identify the red spine of her beloved planner and she could feel her blood boil._

_“Hey!” Tobin’s booming voice screamed out. Usually, Tobin was chill. Nothing can rattle the girl. Nothing except one Christen Press._

_Her loud voice made the other girls drop Christen’s planner and scatter back into the classroom. Tobin ran over to Christen, picking up her planner on the way. She tucked it under her arm and placed her arm around Christen._

_“Chris, you okay?” Tobin asked._

_Christen nodded, still looking down at her carefully picked outfit that day. Every day she tries to dress nice, hoping that Charlene and her stupid posse would stop picking on her, but every day they still do it. She felt Tobin leading her away. “Wait, wait, Tobin,” Christen said softly. “I have to go tell Ms. Shaw that I’m going home.”_

_Tobin nodded and steered them back into the classroom. The students that were picking on Christen was gathered around a desk, studiously working on their projects. Tobin glared at them as she followed Christen to talk to her teacher. She caught one of the girl’s eye, what looked like the gang leader and her gaze hardened. The girl’s eyes widened before pointedly ignoring her._

_“Did you finish your project though Christen?” Ms. Shaw asked. Christen nodded. “Okay, then you may go.”_

_Christen gathered her things before carefully stuffing them in her backpack. Her back was stiff as she tried to ignore the other girls, not giving them the satisfaction of knowing that they actually shook her. Tobin waited by the door, her eyes hard as she surveyed the classroom as if she was Christen’s bodyguard._

_Christen stood in front of her, the backpack slung over her left shoulder. Tobin opened the door and lead her through it. As usual they walked to the practice fields near Christen’s house. This time, Tobin didn’t even drop the soccer ball. She parked underneath a tree and motioned for the younger girl to park her butt in front of her. Christen complied._

_“Why didn’t you tell me, Chris?” Tobin prodded when it was obvious that Christen was not going to talk first._

_Christen shrugged. “I thought I could handle it on my own, but it got worse.”_

_"You could’ve told me,” Tobin said as she picked on the grass._

_“And you could’ve done what?”_

_“We could’ve told someone! An adult!” Tobin said angrily. She hated that her best friend was getting bullied and it took her a month to find out. A month!_

_“I don’t want to be a tattletale!” Christen screamed back. “That’ll just make it worse!”_

_“And I don’t want you to get hurt!” Tobin screamed back, breathing heavily. “Something worse could’ve happened to you, Christen!” Tobin took a deep breath and grasped Christen’s shoulder. “Next time tell me what’s going on, so I can help you. You’re my best friend, Chris. If you don’t want to go to an adult fine, but you don’t have to deal with this on your own. It’s okay to talk about it.”_

_Christen sighed as she moved further into Tobin’s arms. She slumped against her best friend’s chest. “I’m sorry, Tobin. I didn’t mean to yell,” she said into her chest. “I promise I won’t keep anything from you again.”_

_Tobin tightened her grip around her friend. “I love you, Chris.”_

_“I love you too.”_

_-_

_-_

_-_

Tobin looks over at her best friend, who was still inspecting both of their packs to make sure they have everything for their day hike. Tobin can still remember the furiousness and the lividness she felt when she found out what Christen was dealing with just because she was extra organized and extra prepared, a concept middle-schoolers found boring and uncool. It took Christen a while after that incident to be fully herself again. She was still cautious when it came to other people other than Tobin. After that incident, she rarely interacted with the gifted program, choosing only to focus on making it through the year with the highest marks to spite Charlene and her posse, much to Tobin’s delight.

“Snacks…”Christen mumbles as she looked at her checklist before checking around both backpacks. “Check! Hats,” she touches the sun hat on her head and looked over at Tobin who was wearing her snapback backwards on her head. “Check!”

Tobin smiles. She looks so cute. She got up from her perch by the campfire and wraps her arms around her best friend’s waist and props her chin on Christen’s shoulder, reading the checklist. Christen looks over her shoulder and gives her a wide smile. “Do we have everything, boss?”

Christen shuts her notebook and met her eyes. “Yep, let’s go on this hike.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys liked it! Can't wait to hear your thoughts!


	3. three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter. Hope you guys enjoy reading it!

Tobin leads Christen to the trail that she chose. It wasn’t strenuous by any means but it was long. If she was right, it will take them the better part of the day to finish the hike (which is just what her best friends need in her opinion). The other reason she also chose this path was because of…

“Doggie,” Tobin hears Christen breathe out next to her. Since the trail has no significant elevation change nor does it have any switchbacks or any other part of the hike that will make it hard for dogs to go on the trail, this was a very popular for hikers with their furry friends to take.

Sure enough, up ahead a chocolate Labrador was panting alongside its owner, obviously just coming back from their hike. Tobin can practically feel Christen vibrating next to her at the urge to pet the four-legged animal. When they got close enough, Christen made small talk with the owner before asking to pet the dog.

“What’s his name?” Christen asked as she crouched in front of the dog, letting it slobber all over her face. She grabbed his face between her hands and started mushing it. “Oh my god, you’re so cute; aren’t you? You’re such a good boy! Did you have a good hike?”

The owner smiled down at Christen.”His name is Chocolate Chip, but we call him CC.”

“Aww how cute!” Christen says as she continues to love on the dog

Tobin let's Christen pet the dog before tugging on a lock of hair. “C’mon, babe, I think they want to go back now.”

Christen looks up, startled. Her cheeks quickly turn red as she realized she’s been holding up the owners for far too long. “I’m so sorry!”

The owners just laugh. “It’s no problem,” she says. “But we do have to get going. It was nice meeting you guys.”

“Nice meeting you too,” Tobin says as Christen says goodbye to her new friend. Tobin tugs on Christen’s hands so that they can keep on walking. “You know who that reminds me of?”

Christen smiles sadly, remembering her own sandy brown Labrador. “Libby?”

Tobin nodded. “Yeah. That dog was so cute and awesome.”

“Yeah because at that point your parents didn’t want to have pets in the house,” Christen points out. “She was kind of a dumb dog though. Remember when she would just lick the door because she really wanted to go outside? And it doesn't have to be the door that leads outside. It was any door.”

“She was still awesome!” Tobin defends.

“I haven’t thought of her in years,” Christen admits guiltily.

-

-

-

_ Tobin: Age 9 _

_ Christen: Age 8 _

_ Tobin pedals faster on her orange bike towards Christen’s house. It was the weekend and surprisingly she didn’t have a soccer game today, so as usual she was heading towards Christen’s house. She parks her bike against the Press’s house before knocking on the door. _

_ The door opened and Mrs. Press lets the youngster in. She had a sad smile that didn’t go past Tobin. She could feel her worry going up as she can feel the somber mood in the room. Tobin ran up to Christen’s room trying to get away from the heavy feeling. She bursts into Christen room in her usual explosive manner. She was about to greet Christen when she realized that the somber room that was downstairs was more potent up in her room. _

_ Christen was sitting on her bed, knobby knees tucked underneath her chin. Her mouth down turned and she didn’t even look up when Tobin entered. _

_ “Christen?” Tobin asked, cautiously. “What’s wrong?” _

_ Christen looked up and one look at Tobin’s caring face, she bursts into tears. Tobin crosses the steps between the bed and the door and engulfed Christen in a hug. “Christen?” Tobin asked, her voice high-pitched due to the panicky feeling. “CP?” _

_ “My mommy said Libby had to go to heaven to because she was in too much pain,” Christen cried out. _

_ Tobin felt the tears gather in her eyes. Christen continues to cry and it grips Tobin’s heart as she feels her own tears fall. Pretty soon the pair of best friend were just sobbing together on Christen’s bed. _

_ “A-a-at l-l-least she’s with your grandpa,” Tobin hiccoughed as she sits next to Christen, her arm around the younger girl. Christen cuddled up to her side and just continued to cry. _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

_ After Stacy Press heard the pair crying, she brought them down to the kitchen with some hot cocoa (with marshmallows) and cookies to try and cheer them up. Both girls look downtrodden as they quietly munched their cookies with red-rimmed eyes. _

_ Out of her three children, she knew that Christen was going to take the death of their pet the hardest. She was glad that Tobin decided to come over, even though instead of one crying child, she now has two to deal with. _

_ Tobin sat as she sipped her hot chocolate and picked on the cookie. She wanted to cheer up her best friend, but she didn’t know how. SHe knew soccer was out of the question. She knows that soccer might work for her, but for her best friend it wasn’t the best way to and she wants to see her smile as quickly as possible. _

_ She glanced over at Christen, who looked out of it; she was just staring into space as she munched on the chocolate chip cookie. Tobin crooked her finger to Mrs. Press, beckoning her to come over. Mrs. Press went over to the youngin amusedly. Tobin started whispering her plan to Mrs. Press who gave her the okay. Tobin jumped from her seat, grabbed Christen’s hand, and dragged her to her room. Yeah, she was glad that Christen had Tobin. _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

“I never really thanked you that day,” Christen remembers. 

They spent the entire day at the beach and made it like dolphins. They rode the waves, made sand castles, and took turns burying each other in the sand. Christen’s heart was still heavy, but she felt considerably lighter after that day all because of the amazing woman standing next to her.

Tobin shrugs. “I just hated seeing you cry,” she admits sheepishly, rubbing her neck.

Christen laughs at her best friend. She knows that. Anytime Christen wants something from the tan midfielder, the puppy dog eyes usually work.

“You have a beautiful smile,” Tobin says, shrugging. “I just hate it when I don’t see it.”

Christen immediately stops laughing and her heart jumps at Tobin’s words. Before she can comment on it though, Tobin was already walking ahead of her. She picked up her speed to try and catch up to the midfielder. She was about to bellow to tell her to slow down when a scream erupts from her mouth as she went down.

“Chris!” Tobin exclaims as she ran back to her side. She crouched down to inspect Christen’s ankle. “I think it’s just sprained.”

Christen groans as she covers her face in frustration. “So much for no injuries,” she mumbles.  

Tobin instructs her to move her foot. She moves it and hissed in pain. Tobin helps her to her feet and Christen heavily leans on her best friend.

“Wait, hold on,” Tobin says as she carefully sets Christen on her feet. She crouched in front of her. “Alright, Tobin’s back at your service. Hop on!”

Christen didn’t even have to think twice and hopped on Tobin’s back. She wrapped her arms around Tobin’s neck. She pressed a kiss on her cheek. “Thanks, Tobs,” she says. Christen can physically see Tobin’s cheek pink as they moved forward. “Should we head back instead?”

“Nah,” Tobin says. “We’re almost there, might as well keep going.”

Tobin can feel Christen’s puffs of breath on her neck, her body heat seeping through the thin t-shirt. She wanted to groan in frustration. Of course, something like this would happen, making her crush even more tenfold as Christen continues to ramble on about the different species of wild plants surrounding them like the nerd she was. And of course Tobin tells her. “Ow!” Tobin complains as Christen gives her a whack in the head. “Careful, Chris, I hold your life in my hands.”

“Don’t you mean you hold my ass in your hands?” Christen says cheekily, making Tobin guffaw. “Remember when you broke your leg that one summer and you had to miss a year of soccer?”

“Oh god,” Tobin says as she remembers. “I blocked out that summer because I was so miserable. No one believed me when I told them you were the one that pushed me off the tree.”

“Because I was the good child!” Christen defends as she props her chin on Tobin’s shoulder. “And I didn’t push you off you slipped!”

“Yeah because you were so mad that I beat you that you grabbed my foot in retaliation.”

-

-

-

_ Tobin: Age 13 _

_ Christen: Age 12 _

_ Tobin and Christen stood side-by-side, looking up at the apple tree in Tobin’s yard. Tobin claimed that it’s been there since they moved at that house when she was five. The tree itself was pretty small for an apple tree, but for Tobin and Christen it was pretty tall. _

_ “I bet you I can beat you to the top of the tree,” Christen commented casually, knowing it’ll rile the older girl up. They were having mini-competitions lately and Christen had lost the last couple of these competitions. She’s itching to win. _

_ Tobin looked over at the younger girl. Tobin hit a growth spurt that year so she was a good 3 inches taller than Christen. She made a show of looking her up and down. “Chris I’m 3 inches taller than you. I’m pretty sure I’ll beat you.” _

_ “If you’re so sure about it why don’t you show me?” Christen asked before she took off running to get a head start on climbing. "First one to grab the top apple wins!" _

_ “OH! You cheater!” Tobin cried as she scrambled to climb up the tree. _

_ Like predicted, Tobin’s height advantage eventually won over Christen’s speed. She passed Christen on her right as she kept climbing, carefully slotting her foot on the branches. She hears Christen make a frustrated noise before she felt a large tap on her foot. In hindsight, it wasn’t really hard enough to make her lose her footing nor did Christen grab it. She was just so startled that she lost her footing and she ended up careening down the side of the tree. Then the screaming began. She didn’t know if it was Christen who screamed first or if it was her. _

_ The pain at her lower foot hit her all at once, making the tears on her face fall faster. She felt Christen grab her face and soon she was staring at her friend’s panicked grey eyes. _

_ Christen swiped her thumbs underneath her eyes to clean off the moisture. “Calm down,” Christen said soothingly. “Can you stand up?” _

_ “I don’t know, do you think I can?” Tobin asked bitingly through her tears. _

_ “Okay I am ignoring that because you are in pain,” Christen mumbled to herself. She turned around and showed her back to Tobin. “Okay, hop on.” _

_ “What?” _

_ “Hop on my back!” Christen insisted. Tobin sighed and carefully crawled on Christen’s back. Christen stood up, her hands underneath her thighs. Tobin’s leg was hanging uselessly against Christen’s side. “I’m sorry, Tobs,” Christen apologized as they trekked through the Heath’s backyard. Christen felt Tobin nudge her hand against her chest. Tobin opened up her palm and lying against it was a perfectly red apple. _

_ - _

_ - _

-

“I didn’t pull you!” Christen insists. “I gave you a tap on your foot and you slipped.”

“Uh-huh, sure,” Tobin says, unconvincingly. She knows that Christen would never do something to harm her. The girl won’t hurt a fly (literally; they were at Tobin’s studying when a fly was buzzing annoyingly at Tobin’s ear. She was so close to killing it when Christen managed to trap the annoying bugger and let it go outside much to Tobin’s amusement). Christen just has a big heart. One of the things that Tobin loves about her.

Christen taps Tobin on the cheek with her forefinger. “Tobs, you know if I knew that was going to happen, I never would’ve tapped on your ankle.”

Tobin can hear the regret in her voice. She squeezed Christen’s thighs. “I know. You just really wanted to beat me because I whooped your ass last time. OW! Chris!” Tobin whines again as Christen whacks her in the head again.

“I’m trying to be sincere here,” Christen says, a bit annoyed.

Tobin rolls her eyes. “We were kids, Chris. Honestly, I was surprised that was the first broken bone either of us suffered. Especially with all the shit that we got into.”

Christen laughs as she leans all her weight onto the midfielder. “True.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Send me your thoughts!


	4. four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next installment! Hope you guys enjoy it.

 

 

Tobin hiked Christen up on her back higher as she kept slipping. Tobin playfully acted as if Christen’s weight was dragging her down. “Damn, CP,” she huffs. “You’re so heavy.”

Christen leaned her weight much more heavily on the midfielder. “Oh please,” she says. She squinted, looking ahead as she realized that they’re close to the end of the trail. “Tobs, we’re almost there!”

Tobin drags her feet even more. Christen realizes this and she tapped Tobin on her side with her heel. “Tobs!” Christen tightens her arms around the middy’s neck as if she was giving her a big tighter hug.

Tobin laughs and walks normally again. THey finally reached the end of the trail with Christen against her back, Tobin went to the edge. She can feel Christen prop her head on her shoulder as they took the view in. Christen taps her on her side again. Tobin knew immediately that she wanted to be placed down. Tobin gently let her down so that she can rest against the crowd of rocks.

Tobin sighs in contentment as she she sits against the rocks as well, taking in the vastness that was in front of them. Tobin loved going to the beach or just getting lost in the trail. There was just something about the greatness of the ocean and the calmness of nature that makes Tobin feel like she was one with nature. She lets the breeze ruffle through her hair as she closes her eyes. She takes a deep breath and looks over at Christen to realize, she’s been watching her this whole time.

Christen watches as her best friend takes a deep breath as her eyes closes. Her eyes sweeps over the midfielder’s tanned face, her lips held a small smile as if she’s remembering a good memory and it makes Christen smile as well. To her Tobin always look beautiful. As usual, Tobin was in her own little world.

“Hey,” Tobin quietly says to her.

Christen’s face burns as she realizes that Tobin caught her staring. She averts her eyes back to the view in front of them. “Hi,” she says.

Nature was always their go-to place. This is where they divulged their deepest fear and their darkest secrets. For some reason, looking into the distance, to see the horizon, dotted with greens, browns, and blues helps coax their problems out into open space.

“I’m scared,” Tobin says with the same quiet tone she had earlier, afraid that if she says it any louder, the bubble that they made might pop.

Christen looks at her, startled. Tobin, her fearless, carefree, wild best friend was  _ scared _ . Something she’s never heard come out of Tobin’s mouth before.

“Of what?” Christen asks, though she obviously has an idea. In less than a week, they won’t be able to see each other every day. No more milkshakes on Fridays. No more late night talks at the practice fields across from Christen’s house. No more trying to take naps as they try to catch up on sleep after soccer practice and end up talking about everything and nothing. No huddling underneath a blanket as they watched the sun rise and the sun set every Sunday.

“That I’ll lose you,” Tobin admits. She leans against the rock and looks at Christen. “Promise me that I won’t lose you.”

Christen gives her a wry smile. “You know that you never would, Tobin,” she says gently.

Tobin blew out a breath and she can physically feel her hands shaking. Those where the exact same words Christen uttered when they had that poignant conversation when they were in their sophomore year.

-

-

-

_ Christen: Age 14 _

_ Tobin: Age 15 _

_ It wasn’t anything big. If anything it was very anticlimatic. There was no epic life changing moment when she figured it out (okay it was still very much life changing, but there was no angels singing as she saw the light). It was more like a sudden thought and a sudden realization while she was doing her history homework. But when she does figure it out, it felt right like something slots into place and now everything makes sense (well almost everything as she glares at her math homework waiting to be finished). _

_ She went through her day normally with the realization weighing heavily at the back of her mind. She accepts that this is who she is. But will others? She was hyperaware of her mannerisms around girls as well as around her best friend. She didn’t know whether or not Christen would continue to be friends with her if she ever finds out. _

_ As usual, Tobin and Christen met up at the bench in front of the school. As usual, Christen was there first a book propped on her lap, using her gym bag as a foot rest. Tobin stopped in her tracks as she takes in her best friend’s appearance. Her hair was swept up in a dangerously high ponytail and as usual she was sporting a cute, impeccable outfit unlike the other student athletes who opts to wear sweatpants everywhere (Tobin), Christen actually likes dressing up for school. Even from afar, Tobin can see her grey-green eyes moving as she scans the page as well as her lips moving as she mouths the words. She always thought that Christen was beautiful, like drop-dead gorgeous beautiful. _

_ Now that she realizes that she’s attracted to girls, she figures out that the pitter patter of her heart that she feels whenever Christen is around increases tenfold, her hands become clammy and sweaty and gross, her brain short circuits whenever she sees those grey-green eyes, she has a massive crush on her best friend and it all started when Christen tattled on her (or at least tried to). _

_ Christen looked up from her textbook to see Tobin just standing there, gaping at her. Or at least in her direction. She looked behind her to see if anyone’s behind her, but other than the chainlink fence it was just her. Christen gives her a smile and a wave, but Tobin just continues to stare at her.  Christen was confused (yeah that’s the right word as to why Tobin would just be staring at her) and worried. _

_ Tobin shook her head to try to make her brain work again. She forced her feet to move towards the forward. She plopped down next to Christen. _

_ “You okay there, Tobs?” Christen asked concernedly. _

_ Tobin gave her a thumbs up and a smile that was more of a grimace really, making Christen even more worried. “Everything’s great, CP,” Tobin said brightly, but even to Christen it sounded forced. “Hey, so did you finish the questions for English?” _

_ Christen stared at her for a second before allowing the change in subject. “Yeah,” she said her voice raspy. She cleared her throat. “Yeah. Did you need help?” _

_ Tobin breathed a sigh of relief as Christen let it go. But of course, Christen will not let it go easily. _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

_ Practice for Tobin and Christen went horribly. They weren’t connecting and their chemistry was off. Since their chemistry were off, their team chemistry was also lacking, making their coach frustrated as well as their teammates. Finally after an hour of no progress, their coach concedes and lets them leave practice early. _

_ Tobin was the first one done and as usual waits for Christen outside. She was leaning against the wall beside the door, an earphone hanging on one ear and her thumb endlessly swiping against her phone as she plays Temple Run. She was still trying to beat Christen’s score on her phone. It taunts her every time she opens up the app. _

_ Christen came out of the locker room, her wet hair, curly and wild, hanging off one side. She didn’t even say anything as she passed by Tobin. Opting instead to grab her by the hand and drag her. _

_ Tobin jumped at the contact but let herself be tugged by her best friend. She’s not sure whether or not Christen was pissed (and at this point she does not want to find out). She allows the smaller girl to lead her around their usual route. Christen was mindful that she doesn’t go too fast even though she wants to. _

_ Tobin’s eyes widened as she realized where Christen was leading her towards. Not their practice field, but by the rocks at the beach that forms a small cove, a sure sign that a serious conversation was about to happen. Tobin can feel her anxiety spiking. She uselessly tugged at her hand in Christen’s but it was no use as the forward had  firm grip on her. Christen’s stride was sure and true as she leads them to the cove. She practically pushes Tobin down against the sand and blocked the only exit. Tobin looked around and for a moment, she seriously thinks of scaling that tall rocks. _

_ “Tell me what’s going on with you, Tobin,” Christen demanded firmly, but gently. Christen watched as Tobin looks down at her hands, which was shaking profusely, but does not answer her question. “Tobin?” _

_ Tobin took a deep breath and looked at the forward straight in the eye. “I’m gay,” she said, her voice strong, despite the nerves that she’s feeling. “I like girls.” _

_ Christen’s eyes widened at her announcement and stared down at her best friend with disbelief in her eyes. Tobin was still sitting on the ground, her hands shaking on her lap, her eyes looking up at Christen fearfully waiting for her reaction. The waves continue to lap against the rocks, providing the only sound. For some reason, it helped Tobin. _

_ “Oh Tobs,” Christen said gently. She dropped down, letting her knees hit the sand as she engulfed her best friend in a hug. _

_ As if that was the catalyst, Tobin let her weight go and leaned against Christen’s chest as she cried tears of relief. “I thought I was going to lose you,” Tobin said, in between her tears. _

_ “You know I don’t care about that,” Christen said as she stroked Tobin’s head as she soothed her before slapping her on the back. _

_ “Ow!” Tobin cried out in shock as she pulled away from Christen. “What the hell, CP?” _

_ “I can’t believe you would think that I wouldn’t be okay with this!” Christen said exasperated. “I love you Tobin. You’re my best friend. If you like girls then fine you like girls. To me it doesn’t matter because you’re Tobin.” _

_ Tobin smiled as she gathered Christen into a big hug. “Thank you,” she murmured as she dropped a kiss on her hair. “I really thought I was going to lose you.” _

_ Christen rolled her eyes. For someone as chill as Tobin, she could be so overdramatic sometimes. “You’re never going to lose me.” _

_ “Promise?” Tobin asked, her voice was shaky and unsure. _

_ “Promise that you won’t lose me and short of murdering anyone, you can never get rid of me. I’m stuck with you forever. And now I know to set you up with girls rather than guys.” _

_ Tobin laughed at her attempt to lighten things up. “You’re such a dork, CP.” _

_ That was the moment Tobin realized she didn’t have a crush on her best friend. She was in love with her best friend. _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

Christen looked at her best friend worriedly. Tobin was quiet, which wasn’t unusual. She usually has to pull her friend out of her own head most of the time. But this quietness was different. There was a turmoil inside Tobin’s head and Christen can tell by the way she held herself. Her neck was tense, but her body was slumped over as if in defeat. 

“Tobin, what’s going on?” Christen says softly, trying to coax it out her best friend.

“What if…”Tobin sighs in frustration, wetting her lips. “What if…”

“What if what, Tobin?” Christen implores. She scoots closer to Tobin, before laying her hand her arm. “Tobs?”

Tobin turns to her best friend. Christen can see the frustration in her eyes as she brings a hand up to Christen’s face. Her thumb caresses her cheek. Tobin pulls her face towards her, her eyes never leaving Christen’s eyes. When she sees no rejection in her eyes, Tobin slots their lips together.

Christen’s eyes widens at her best friend’s action, but made no motion to push her friend away. She melts into it, closing her eyes, feeling the kiss warm her chest. Tobin slips her tongue in her mouth and Christen allows it, her strokes were long and languid, building into something more. All too soon, Tobin slows it down even more, before they were reduced to just pecking.

Tobin pulls away and watches as Christen bites her lips, her eyes closed, cheeks flushed. She opens her eyes and looks at Tobin, who had a smug look on her face, making her face redden even more. She pushes against Tobin. “Shut up,” she mumbles,

“I didn’t say anything!” Tobin defends herself, holding up her hands, palms out.

“I can’t see it in your face you smug bastard,” Christen says, giggling as she laces their hands together.

Tobin smiles, staring at their laced fingers. “If it wasn’t obvious,” she says. “I really, really like you Christen.”

Christen gives her a wide smile. She tilts her head, making her look like a cute puppy. “Tobs, is this what you’ve been scared of telling me?”

Tobin nods. “I was so scared. I thought you were straight!”

Christen laughs. “You thought I was straight? Tobs, I checked out girls with you!”

“I thought you were being your usual supportive self,” Tobin says. “You never told me you like girls too.”

“I thought it was pretty obvious I liked both boys and girls,” Christen replies. Then she remembers how Tobin usually is, oblivious and up in the clouds most of the time. “But then again, it is you.”

“Hey!” Tobin looks affronted before nodding her head. “That’s true though.” She sighs and leans against the rocks, letting her drop down a bit. She pulls on Christen until she was laid out on her side, pressed up against her.

Christen laughs and pulls herself up over Tobin. She drops a quick kiss on her lips.

Tobin just pulls her closer, mindful of her leg of course. The smile on her face was wide, despite the loud beating of her chest (which she thinks is either because Christen was pressed up against her or because of how the adrenaline is coursing through her veins of having her feelings returned) and the nervousness she’s feeling. She feels so happy she thought she was going to combust.

_Right now, in the quiet of the desert, the tall brown rocks surrounding them with patches of white, the girl of her dreams cuddled up to her side, Tobin never felt so alive among the tall trees. _

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed it. So this is the end with the epilogue coming sometime next week or the week after. I'll try to get it out as fast as I can so I can focus on the compass that guides us.
> 
> Send me your thoughts!


	5. epilogue (unum)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First part of the epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for how long this took! Remember this is only the first part. Also let us ignore the NCAA's ridiculous rule for this story. We'll say they're a bit more lax.

Christen stares at the countdown on her wall until Tobin’s flight lands. They made it. Years of flying, phone calls, skype dates and they made it. It wasn’t easy. They broke up twice. Once in freshman year near the end of the year and the other during their junior year during the first semester. But they made it.

_ Spring Quarter: Freshman Year _

_ Tobin: Age 18 _

_ Christen: Age 17 _

_ Allie sighed and took a deep breath, bracing herself as she opens the door. She was used to seeing Tobin on her desk, skyping with her girlfriend, joking and talking about their day. So when she opened the door and instead of finding Tobin by her desk, she was in her bed, pouting, looking sad and confused. _

_ “Why are you moping?” Allie says as she drops her backpack on the floor by her desk. She jumps on Tobin’s bed and laid next to her. “Did you and Christen have a fight?” Allie asks jokingly. When Tobin didn’t answer, Allie’s eyes widens. “Oh shit, you and Christen had a fight?” _

_ “She broke up with me,” Tobin whispers as she stares at the ceiling, dotted with glow in the dark stars. She still remembered her and Christen having to jump on Tobin’s mattress in order to get the stars up there. The RA downstairs had to tell them to not jump on the bed because their neighbors downstairs were getting disturbed. “Harry, I don’t know what to do,” she whimpers. _

_ “Why did she break up with you?” Allie asks, her voice gentle and soothing, trying to make sure Tobin doesn’t work herself up too much. _

_ “Remember that party we went to last week?” Tobin begins. Allie nods. “There was a picture of me and this girl. We weren’t doing anything. We were just talking. I guess it looked bad because our heads were really close together. But the music was loud! I couldn’t hear anything. We had to be that close. We were actually talking about her girlfriend.” _

_ “Christen saw the picture,” Allie deduced. _

_ Tobin nodded. “She got mad and I don’t know what happened. One minute we were joking around like we usually do, the next minute we were shouting at each other. Then I was single.” _

_ Allie sighed. “Did you try calling her again?” _

_ Tobin shook her head. “No, I didn’t do anything wrong!” _

_ “Tobin, you should call her. Apologize and try to explain that you weren’t cheating on her,” Allie says. “If you need someone to vouch for you, just tell me and I will.” _

_ “But I didn’t do anything wrong,” Tobin insisted, frustratedly, running her hand through her hair. “How could she even think I’m cheating on her?” _

_ “Tobin this is a relationship,” Allie explained gently. “You have to compromise. I know you didn’t do anything wrong and she probably overreacted, but if you wanna salvage this you have to talk to her.” _

_ Tobin makes a frustrated noise in the back of her throat before rolling over. “I’m going to take a nap.” _

_ “You can’t solve all your problems with naps, Tobin,” Allie told her as she crawled over her so that she can go to her desk and do some homework. _

_ “Oh yeah? Watch me!” Tobin said, stubbornly as she forced her eyes shut and grabbed her sheets and threw them over hear head. _

_ Allie shook her head and just started on her homework. She periodically would glance over Tobin to see if she was actually sleeping, but based on her fast she was breathing and still making frustrated noises, she knows that she’s not actually sleeping. _

_ “Harry?” Allie called out quietly. No answer. “Harry?” She walked over to the covered form and pulled back the blanket to see Tobin actually sleeping. She shrugged and went to the mini fridge to grab a snack, knowing that when Tobin wakes up she probably would want to eat somewhere. _

_ There was a series of knocks at her door and Allie ran over to the door so that it doesn’t disturb Tobin and when she opened the door, she was surprised to see Christen standing on the other side with red-rimmed eyes and a small, uncertain smile. _

_ “Christen! Hi!” Allie said as she opened the door wider to let the younger girl in. “Did Tobin know you were coming?” _

_ Christen shook her head. “Um...I just needed to see her.” _

_ Allie nodded. “Got it. She’s sleeping right now but give me a couple of minutes and I’ll get out of your hair.” _

_ “Oh no, Allie,” Christen said, feeling bad that she has to kick Tobin’s roommate out. _

_ “It’s okay, you’re fine. I’m going to get food with Ash anyway and maybe stay with Bati for the night,” Allie said giving Christen a wink, making her blush. She gave Christen a pat on the back. “Good luck!” _

_ Christen waited until she heard the click of the door locking before going to Tobin’s bed. She pulled the covers back to see her beautiful sleeping girlfriend. Her eyes were shut so hard that Christen can see crinkles around it as if she’s still forcing her own eyes shut. The furrows between her brows were prominent, indicating Tobin is not having a nap. And it’s all her fault. _

_ She knew the moment that she hung up that she might’ve been overreacting. Okay not might’ve been, but definitely overreacting. So channeling her inner Tobin (and it being Friday and no game the next day helped) and hopped on the plane to go to Tobin. To beg for forgiveness if necessary (in her opinion begging really is required). She climbed behind Tobin and curled herself around her, throwing an arm around Tobin’s waist and snuggling against her back. _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

_ When Tobin woke up with an arm slung around her waist and puffs of breaths on against her neck, she panics and moves so fast off the bed that she ended up crashing on the floor. “Fuck! Ow…” she rubs her butt trying to alleviate some of the pain. _

_ “Tobin?” Her head pops up from the pillow, hair mussed, a clenched fist rubbing her tired eyes. “What are you doing on the floor?” _

_ “Christen?” Tobin asked, confused. She grabs onto the edge of the bed and pulls herself up to her knees to see girlfriend (well technically ex-girlfriend) looking mussed up and adorable. She scrambled to get back on the bed when she realized it really was Christen in the flesh. “What are you doing here? When did you get here?” She looks like a little kid in trouble for a moment as she asks, “Are you going to yell at me?” _

_ “No no no no no,” Christen says. “I...I’m sorry for overreacting. She picks at the loose threads on Tobin’s blankets, slowly unspooling them from the blanket. “I know that you weren’t cheating on me. I just...my roommate’s boyfriend just cheated on her with this girl at a party and I don’t know I thought… _

_ “You thought I was doing the same,” Tobin concludes. “Cap,” she sighs as she pulls out the childhood nickname. She throws an arm around Christen and leans them back against the pillow. “You know you’re it for me right? You are literally my perfect girl. If I have you, why would I look for perfection in someone else?” _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

They made up that weekend. It was hardly smooth sailing from then.

“Waddup, bitch!” Kelley exclaimed, walking into their apartment. She dropped her backpack and laid across the couch. “What time are you going to pick up Tobin?”

“In a bit,” Christen said as she got ready. She looks at the mirror as she tries to apply her mascara. “Her flight should be landing in about an hour.”

Kelley nodded. “Do you need someone to come with you? My night class was cancelled.”

Christen shook her head. “I’m fine. I kind of wanna be alone with her.”

“Oh,” Kelley nods her head. “I gotchu, I gotchu. I’ll go stay with Ali tonight then.”

“Not what I meant, Kell,” Christen replied as she turned back to the mirror to make sure she looks good.

“Oh please,” Kelley said, waving a hand towards her and her attire. “Don’t lie.” Kelley walked behind her and grabbed the back of her shirt to look down. “Oh my god. You’re wearing you’re good underwear. Yup, I am staying with Ali tonight.”

Christen swatted her hand away from her shirt. “Kelley!” She pushed Kelley away from her. “Leave me alone!”

Kelley maniacally laughed and went back to watching her cartoons. “You should probably go now to pick her up,”

Christen glanced at the clock and yelped. She grabs her purse and said a quick goodbye to Kelley. Traffic of course was horrendous but she managed to get there just when her plane landed. She waited by the baggage claim for her girlfriend. She was on her tiptoes trying to search the horde of people, but couldn’t find her.

She was growing frustrated that she couldn’t find Tobin when a voice next to her says. “Who are we looking for?”

“Ah!” Christen yelled, startled. Her eyes widened and she threw herself at Tobin.

Tobin held onto her tight, burying her face in her neck, inhaling her scent. “Hey, babe,” she whispered. “Missed you.”

“Missed you too,” Christen chokes out as she pulls away, eyes a little teary.

Tobin pulled away from her and draped her arm around Christen as she lead them out to the parking lot. Christen reached up and laced their hands together, laying her head on her arm. She leaned a bit on her weight on Tobin and lets herself be dragged around.

“So what are we doing today?” Tobin asked.

“I was thinking we could get takeout then Netflix?” Christen asked. “I know you’re probably tired of all the flying.”

Tobin smiled. “All of the flying and the tiredness is worth it if I get to see your beautiful face at the end of each flight.”

Christen rolled her eyes and pushed her a bit. “Okay, cheeseball,” she said. “Let’s go then we can talk about the things we can do this weekend.”

Instead of Christen driving, Tobin ended up driving them back to Christen's apartment. No matter how hard, Christen fought Tobin on that, Tobin ended up winning.

"I just want to take care of you," Tobin tells her dropping a hand to her knee and stroking it.

-

-

-

_ Tobin: Age 18 _

_ Christen: Age 17 _

_ Christen works on her homework, her stress level already at an all-time high because of soccer, school, and social life. Well trying to have a social life. On top of all that she thought it would be a good idea to see volunteer at a dog shelter (because dogs, duh), but she has to sacrifice sleep in order to do that and Christen loves her sleep. _

_ She can feel a headache bearing down on her head already and if she didn’t stop anytime soon it would be a full on migraine. Tears were already building at the corner of her eyes as she feels the pressure building in her head. She takes a couple of pain relievers and pushes through the annoying feeling of a headache. She looks up at the pictures that’s littered at the space above her bed and immediately seeing her girlfriend’s smiling face made her relax a little. _

_ She pushes her homework on one side of her desk and opens up her laptop. She opens the FaceTime app and was about to click on Tobest Heath <3’s name when Tobin’s face fills the screen as a call went through. She clicks on accept and watched as Tobin’s actual face fills the screen. _

_ "Hey, babe,” Tobin greets with her easy going smile. Just looking at that smile made the headache lessen for Christen. _

_ “Hi,” she greets, a small smile on her face. _

_ Tobin’s eyebrows furrows at her girlfriend’s face. She has a small smile, but she can see even through the screen, tears at the corners of her eyes as well. The space between her brows were wrinkled, a sure sign of frustration for the raven-haired forward. “Everything okay?” _

_ “Yeah…” Christen says, her voice and tone dropping as she stares sadly at her homework. _

_ “Chris…” Tobin says. “Don’t lie to me. What’s up?” _

_ Christen sighs. “I’m just so stressed out.” Once she started, it seemed like she couldn’t stop. She tells her about how soccer is not going well; how school is not going well; how she hasn’t made any friends; how homesick she is (despite being closer to their home than Tobin is); how everything seems to be going wrong. “And it’s worse because you’re not here with me and I know it’ll pass, but I just…” She stops and to Tobin’s horror she starts crying and she couldn’t seem to stop. “Tobin…” she hiccoughs. _

_ “Oh, Chris,” Tobin says, hating that she was on the other side of the country. “I wish I could hold you, baby.” _

_ “I’m sorry,” she says in between her cries. She tries to stop her crying but hiccups even more. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” _

_ It took another thirty minutes for Tobin to calm Christen down, reminding her that they were going home in another two weeks for Channing’s birthday. By the end of the call, Tobin has ordered a bouquet of yellow tulips for Christen and a plane ticket for her. _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

_ The flowers get to Christen first. It was a bouquet of bright, fresh, yellow tulips. The card that came with it made Christen smile. Yellow tulips mean there’s sunshine in your smile, at least that’s what the card says.  _

_ She whips out her phone and calls Tobin, frowning when she gets her voicemail instead of actually Tobin. She locks her phone and looks at that time. She’s not in practice nor is she in class. She has one in 30 minutes.  _ Maybe she’s taking a nap; yeah that’s it _ , Christen thought. _

_ “Hey, Chris!” _

_ Christen looks up to see one of her soccer teammates, Kelley O’Hara waving at her rather ecstatically. Christen stops and waits until Kelley can catch up with her. _

_ “You heading to class?” Kelley asks, falling into step with her. _

_ Christen shakes her head. “No, I’m done for the day.”  _ Be social, Christen,  _ she thoughts. “What about you?” _

_ “Heading back to the dorms to take a nap, but I have class at 3:00 PM.” She nods at the bouquet of flowers. “From Tobin?” _

_ Christen nods, smiling at the tulips in her hands. _

_ “I’m guessing everything is going great with her?” Kelley asks. “Yellow tulips; sunshine in your smile. Never knew Tobin could be such a cheeseball.” _

_ Christen laughs, “The cheesiest.” Her phone was still out, willing for it to ring with a text or a call from Tobin. _

_ “Probably won’t answer your phone,” Kelley replies. _

_ “Why do you say that?” Christen asks, confused. “Did she talk to you or text you or-” _

_ Kelley gives her a tap and  nods at something in front of them. Christen looks up, her words drying in her mouth as she saw her girlfriend, dressed in sweats and an UNC hoodie and snapback, leaning against the wall. You can see the tiredness in her eyes even from how far Christen and Kelley are. Kelley laughs as she sees Christen just staring at her girlfriend with awe in her eyes. She pats her on her back. _

_ “I’ll see you later, Press,” she says with a laugh. She walks towards Tobin and gave her a hug before nodding towards Press who still hasn’t moved from her spot. _

_ Tobin looks up, gives her a megawatt smile before turning to Kelley. She assumes they say goodbye because Tobin starts heading towards her, a sheepish smile on her face. _

_ “You have class tomorrow,” Christen says the moment Tobin was in hearing distance. Tobin grabs her and encases her in her arms. Christen relaxes against her and buries her face in her neck, inhaling her scent. _

_ Tobin drops a kiss on forehead. “You needed me.” _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

It wasn’t supposed to be as simple as that. Their separation in college should’ve ended their relationship. From what Christen hears from everyone around her. It was not going to survive their whole 4 years. At most it will survive their first year of college, they say. It’ll be okay if you guys break up. It’s not a failure on your part, they say. This is just how things go. They tell her you will have new interests, you will have new friends, you will drift apart, and pretty soon you’ll no longer want your old life. They forgot to take account one thing though. Christen and Tobin are best friends and nothing; not even a failed relationship will change that.

-

-

-

_ Tobin: Age 17 _

_ Christen: Age 16 _

_ “Hey, Tobs, can you take the tent down?” Christen asks as she cleans up their campsite. They’ve already packed the other supplies in the car, now all they needed to take down was the tent. _

_ “Aye aye captain!” Tobin replies as she walks over to the tent. _

_ Christen watches as Tobin walks around the tent inspecting the tent, trying to figure out the best way to take it down. Christen can see the gears working in Tobin’s head. She looks so serious that Christen couldn’t help but giggle. _

_ “Tobs, take the pegs out first!” Christen says, pointing at the hammer. _

_ Tobin grabs the hammer and waves it over her head. She starts to take the pegs out one by one, her arms flexing underneath her muscle tee. Christen couldn’t help but stop and admire the pull and flex of the muscles rippling. _

_ “Stop staring at me you perv!” Tobin yells out to Christen. _

_ Christen blushes and throws a rock in her direction. “Shut up!” She goes back to packing their stuff in the car, making sure they have enough room for the tent. She looks up to see Tobin walking towards her with the tent in it’s case. “Wow, you actually got it folded it up. Consider me im-PRESS-ed.” Christen laughs at her own pun. _

_ Tobin smiles at her laughter at her own joke. “You’re puns suck, Press.” _

_ “Well you suck Heath!” Christen replies. She motions to the trunk. “Alright put that baby in.” _

_ Tobin slots it in the trunk and gives Christen a high-five. “Alright let’s head on out.” _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

_ Tobin drives while Christen elevates her ankle with ice to make sure it doesn’t swell up. They’ve been talking about getting In-N-Out before heading home. Burgers, fries, and shakes sound amazing after a diet of oatmeal, sandwiches, and trail mixes. _

_ “So we’re really going to do this?” Christen interrupts Tobin in the middle of her babbling about the greatness of In-N-Out. _

_ “Yeah I mean unless you don’t want burgers and shakes?” Tobin says confused. “I guess we can get sushi if you want. But burgers man-” _

_ “Tobs, you know that’s not what I meant,” Christen interrupts again. _

_ Tobin sighs. “Yeah,” she replies. “Unless you don’t want to?” There was no answer from Christen. She quickly glances over to Tobin to try to see her expression. “Chris, I understand if you don’t want to...I know it’s asking a lot.” _

_ “You think it’s asking a lot?” Christen asks, her voice was firm, but questioning. “Asking a lot when you’ve already given all of you to me? It’s asking a lot that I give you a chance?” _

_ “Christen, it doesn’t matter what I’m feeling,” Tobin says. “That shouldn’t be in your consideration whether or not you want to date me. If you do not have feelings for me regardless of whether I love you or not.” _

_ Christen gasps. She chokes out, “You love me?” _

_ “Of course I do,” Tobin replies as if it was obvious (probably to everyone but Christen). “You’ve been my best friend since I accidentally tripped you. You will always be my best friend, Chris. I don’t see myself losing you whether or not this relationship makes it. Are you telling me something different?” _

_ Christen smiles. “No, I don’t see my life without you in it.” _

_ - _

_ - _

_ - _

They were right though. Their last breakup was during their junior year. Tobin has been called up to the senior national team, Press has not. The stress of having a double major, the stress of trying to perform well in soccer, and the crushing disappointment of not being called in any of the youth national teams while Tobin was already with the senior national team, got to Christen and they ended up breaking up. There wasn’t any bitterness to it. Christen just pulled away until Tobin had no choice but to let her go. True to their word, there was no hard feelings, their friendship became their number one priority.

-

-

-

_ Tobin: Age 20 _

_ Christen: Age 19 _

 

_ The text that Christen was waiting for came at 2:32 PM. She can tell you this because she was glancing at the clock, then down at her phone willing for the class to be over soon. She didn’t even know why she took this particular class other than as a grade booster. She was so bored and unchallenged. _

_ The alert comes in and Christen opens it thinking it was Tobin texting her mundane things like what she had for lunch or how she spotted a dog that was skateboarding and she couldn’t take a video or a picture because the dog was going too fast (Christen still hadn’t forgiven her for that). When she opens it, she wasn’t prepared for the three words she’s been dreading ever since they broke up at the end of the first semester. _

**_Tobin Heath: I met someone._ **

_ There were sounds of waves crashing in her ears as she reads the text. She checks it over and over again to make sure she was reading it correctly. Three words and she felt her heart shatter. She manages to form a string of words that for the life of her, she couldn’t remember. But it must’ve been good enough for Tobin because messages were flooding in from her. Describing their first meeting, their first date, and their first kiss. _

_ Every single message sent was an arrow into Christen’s heart, but she tramples the jealousy, the hurt, and the shock as she replies as only a supportive best friend Christen is. She walks back to her apartment in a daze, unsure if she was even allowed to feel the hurt and the jealousy when they agreed to be best friends even after the fact. This is what Christen was most afraid of; the confusion. What was she allowed to feel. _

_ Kelley was rummaging through their fridge trying to find something to eat. After soccer practice she was hangry and she needed food now. But as usual with student athletes with busy lives, they usually have just eggs and bread in their pantry. She hears the door open and her head pops up to see Christen walking in, slowly, her eyes glazed over. _

_ “Hey, Pressy, you okay?” Kelley calls as she shuts the fridge and walks over to the forward slowly not wanting to startle her. When she didn’t get a response, she touches her arm, calling her name. “Pressy?” _

_ “Um...I…” Christen stutters, her phone still clutched tightly to her hand. Her phone pings again with an incoming text message. Christen flinches at the sound. She shoves the phone to Kelley and she sits at the large couch in the living room, and pulls her knees up to her chest, making herself as small as possible. _

_ Kelley watches in her confusion before looking down at the phone. She opens up the text message, putting in Press’s password and she took a sharp breath as she read the latest text. _

**_Tobin Heath: You need to meet her, Press! She’s amazing and I think if you meet her you guys will get along great. She loves dogs and yoga too!_ **

_ “Oh, Press,” Kelley says, locking the phone and leaving it on the table. She sits next to Christen, not wanting to be too close unless the forward wanted her closer. _

_ “She met someone,” Christen gasps, turning to Kelley, finally saying the words out loud. The tears that she didn’t even know she was holding back was slowly streaming down her face. “She  _ met _ someone.” _

_ Kelley didn’t say anything and just pulls her into a hug, letting her cry into her shoulder. She rubs a hand in a soothing motion on Christen’s back as Christen continues to let out little gasps as she tries to calm herself down. _

_ Christen knew at that moment that deciding to be Tobin Heath’s best friend was the worst decision she could’ve made for her heart.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would love to hear your thoughts! Leave me some kudos if you want! Again I am so sorry this took so long.


	6. epilogue (duo)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last part of the epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here is the last part. I kind of got carried away with this thing so it's pretty long. I hope you guys enjoy it! Thank you for all the kudos and comments that you guys left. Ignore NCAA rules because in this world they don't exist at all. Also, I pretty much just finished this and posted it, so if there are any mistakes I want to say sorry and it's my fault.

“Where’s Kelley?” Tobin asks as they push through the door. She drops her weekend bag by the couch.

“She went to Ali’s apartment,” Christen says as she goes to the kitchen to start on dinner. She grabs a bag of chips and throws it on the counter for Tobin to munch on.

“It’s weird how there’s a lot of Americans that we know here in Sweden,” Tobin comments as she sits on the stool by the counter to watch Christen cook them dinner. She grabs the chips and grabs a handful to shove in her mouth.

“It’s all the soccer,” Christen tells her. “That and the new league in the U.S. still hasn’t taken off.”

“I mean it’s pretty good right now,” Tobin tells her.

“Yeah, but that’s because you’re allocated,” Christen says. “It’s hard for most of the girls.”

“Yeah,” Tobin agrees as she continues to munch on the chips. She puts the chips down, wipes her hands on her pants and walks around the counter. She wraps her arms around Christen and leans her chin on her shoulder. She buries her face in her and neck and inhales her scent. “I don’t know if I told you lately, but I’m so proud of you.”

Christen giggles. “Tobin, you tell me everyday we talk on the phone.”

“I just...I don’t think I could’ve done what you would’ve done,” Tobin says. “Packing up everything to go to school in Sweden and actually stay there. Then go pro.”

“Well at that time, the decision was easy,” Christen says, her stomach was in knots remembering the reason why it has been so easy. Even to this day, Tobin didn’t really know the abrupt way she left. Tobin always thought it was because of the opportunities she couldn’t say no to. She would’ve never thought it was because of _her._ Nevertheless, Tobin supported her the moment Christen told her.

-

-

-

_Tobin: Age 20_

_Christen: Age 19_

_“Are you sure you’ll be okay over there in Sweden?” Tobin asked. Her eyes were boring into Christen’s, worried and anxious for her best friend. This is the first time that they’ll ever be this far apart. The separation for college wasn’t as anxiety inducing as this was for Tobin. At least that was just opposite coasts. This was a whole different country, a whole different continent!  She does not like it one bit._

_Christen smiled, albeit it was a bit wobbly, trying to control her emotions. “I’ll be fine, Tobs. It’ll be great. It’s only for this two semesters.” She didn't have to know that when she graduates from Stanford, she’ll head right back to Sweden._

_“You’ll be great,” Tobin told her as she pulled her into a hug. “Well once you walk through those doors, I won’t be able to go with you. But call me once you’re about to board and call me when you land, okay?”_

_“Okay,” Christen whispered, her chest was tight, her eyes were filling with tears at the realization that she was going to live in a country without her family, without her friends, and without Tobin. “I’ll see you soon, okay?”_

_“Sooner than you think,” Tobin told her, cryptically. She drops a kiss on her forehead._

_Christen gave her a shaky smile. She took a deep breath and walked away from Tobin. She looked over her shoulder one last time, trying to memorize how Tobin looks like. For the first time in her life, she wasn’t sure when she’s actually going to see her best friend._

_-_

_-_

_-_

_“Are you going to tell her that you basically ran halfway around the world because you’re still in love with her?” Kelley asked Christen._

_Christen sighed as she moved some paper around her desk, clutching the phone to her ear. “No and you will not either.”_

_“Christen…” Kelley whined. “This is Tobin.”_

_“Exactly,” Christen said. “She’s happy, Kelley.”_

_“Christen, she could be happier with you!” Kelley said, exasperated. Her two friends were so hard headed, it’s frustrating for everyone involved._

_“Kelley,” Christen said, her voice firm. “Stop. It’s fine. Can we not talk about Tobin anymore?” She quickly changed the subject to something that would usually make her sad, but spending time away from the pressurized environment, it no longer gives her a crushing feeling, but she’s able to talk about it now, albeit still a little sadly. “ I heard you got called into camp! Congratulations!”_

_“Yeah! It’s just training and I don’t think I’ll make the Olympic roster, but you know it’s great experience,” Kelley said, slowly unsure if she’s allowed to talk about it. Once Christen made an encouraging noise. Kelley opened up more; the pranks, the intensity, the speed of play._

_Christen leaned back in her chair and listened to Kelley ramble on about the great players that she trained against ignoring the most obvious one, Tobin. It was an hour later and Kelley’s constant yawning that prompts Christen to let Kelley go. She glanced at the clock. It was 5:00 AM in Sweden; knowing Tobin, she would still be awake, reading in the East Coast or outside playing soccer even at 11 PM._

_She debated calling Tobin to wish her goodnight, but instead pulled up her Facebook and scrolls through Tobin’s wall. Her stomach clenched when she sees_ her _comments on Tobin’s walls. She quickly closed the website and tried to concentrate on finishing her paper. It wasn’t due until next week, but she had training, so she wanted to finish at least most of it._

_Her phone vibrated beside her laptop. She glances at the caller I.D. Her heart started beating faster and her palms felt a bit sweaty when she sees Tobin’s name light up her phone. The phone stops ringing and she breathes a sigh of relief, she didn’t know she was holding. Then her phone lights up again and starts vibrating, almost at a furious level, Tobin’s name on the screen again._

_She takes a deep breath and flips it open. “Good evening, Tobs,” she greets._

_“Good morning, Chris,” Tobin greets. “I knew you would be awake at this time. Did you do your yoga yet?”_

_“God, am I really that predictable?” Christen asks, rhetorically. “And, no no yoga yet. I’m trying to finish a paper before class. How are you?”_

_There was silence on the other end and Christen can actually imagine Tobin shrugging. “I’m okay. Missing you though.”_

_“I miss you too, Tobs,” Christen says, a smile on her face at Tobin’s confession. “How was camp?”_

_Tobin groans. “It was great.” There was a slight hesitation in her tone when she asks, “Kelley was called up did she tell you?”_

_“Yeah! I just got off the phone with her a couple of minutes ago. It sounds like it was intense,” Christen says._

_“Yeah,” Tobin breathes, her voice trailing off, the word just hanging in the air._

_Christen can hear her breathing on the other side and she was content to just listen to Tobin breathing as creepy as that sounds. She didn’t know that this separation was going to take a toll on her heart this much. It’s only been a month and she didn’t know how she can even think of making it for the next three or four years in another country from her loved ones._

_There was shuffling on Tobin’s end of the phone and Christen can hear her talking to someone. She closes her eyes in annoyance. It must be_ her _wanting Tobin’s attention again._

_“Chris, I gotta go. I’ll talk to you soon, okay?” Tobin says._

_Christen’s shoulders hunched, wanting to tell her to stay on the line and just talk to ther some more to try to alleviate the loneliness she feels, but knowing she no longer has the right to demand her attention. “Okay, Tobs.”_

_“I love you and I’m so proud of you.”_

_Christen smiled. “Thanks, Tobs. I love you too.”_

_-_

_-_

_-_

_Christen watches with bated breath, her hands clenched into fists, on the top of her thighs, her eyes tracking the ball on the screen. She wasn’t able to fly out because she school was about to start so she was stuck watching the Olympics at her apartment by herself. It was for the best really with the way she’s been pacing up and down the living room as the United States Women’s National Team failed to finish any of the plays. Now they’re moving on to the first round of overtime. At around the 96th, Carli Lloyd manages to pick up the ball and let it rip right; the ball dipped and went right underneath the keeper and into the goal._

_Christen shot out of her seat, fist pumping, screaming as she sees the team celebrate on screen. She told herself to calm down as there is still about 9 minutes left for the first half as well as another 15 minute half before they can be declared as winners. Finally, when the whistle blows, Christen celebrated again, jumping up and down in front of the TV._

_She grabbed her phone and dialed Tobin’s number. The phone was ringing when she realized Tobin might not pick up. She was about to hang up and just text her when to her surprise, she heard Tobin’s breathless voice on the other side._

_“Chris?!” Tobin yelled through the phone. She can hear the commotion on the other side. She watched the tv screen as they panned over the team as well as Brazil. “Chris! WE WON! WE WON!”_

_“Tobin! I’m so proud of you!” Christen said, tears were forming in her eyes. She felt overwhelmed with pride for her best friend. “I wish I could be there.”_

_“I wish you were here too,” Tobin says. “Oh, Chris, it feels so amazing! I don’t think I ever felt anything like it.”_

_Christen smiled through her happy tears. “I bet. I’ll let you go so you can celebrate with the team. I’m so proud of you. I love you.”_

_“I love you too.”_

_-_

_-_

_-_

_Christen woke up with her phone blaring Tobin’s ringtone. She glanced at the clock and groaned when 3:00 in red was blinking at her. She quickly answered the phone and was about to give Tobin a talking to, but before she can utter one word Tobin already said something that made her heart stop._

_“Open the door.”_

_-_

_-_

_-_

Tobin lays on the couch, with Christen pressed against her front, her arm dangling around her waist. They were watching Finding Nemo (again for the 30th time) because Christen wanted to prep for Finding Dory when it comes out on DVD, despite the fact she saw it in the theatres at least 3 times.

“This movie is like 80% sad,” Tobin says. “I don’t know why you want to keep watching it over and over again. Especially since it makes you cry the first fifteen minutes.”

Christen tries to hide her sniffles as she speaks. “It’s just so heartwarming...the feeling of home. Now shush. It’s almost finished.”

Tobin laughs and drops a kiss on her hair. She tightens her hold on her and presses her against her front, trying to be as close to her as possible. She drops her face into the crook of her neck to place the lightest of kisses there.

“Tobin,” Christen warns, her voice breathy and bordering into a moan.

“You’re not saying stop,” Tobin mumbles, as she moves onto her shoulders. Not many knew, but Tobin  loves shoulders (or maybe just one in particular). She loves the slope and the curve of it. She continues to leave feather light kisses on Christen’s shoulder before biting and sucking the skin where her shoulder meets her neck.

“Tobin,” Christen breathes as Tobin continues to pepper kisses on her skin. She groans and grabs the remote to turn the TV off. She grabs Tobin's hand and tugs her from the couch. Ignoring Tobin’s smug grin, she pulls her towards her bedroom.

-

-

-

_Tobin: Age 21_

_Christen: Age 20_

_Christen groaned as she watches the ball go wide of the net. She heard the crowd groan along with her. After being in Sweden for a year, she feels like a little bit of the weight that she put on her shoulders was lifted, even for a little bit. Enough that she doesn’t feel like having an anxiety attack or a crying jag every time she stepped on the pitch._

_The whistle blows for the end of the 1st half, ending the game at 1-0. Christen felt the frustration and the pressure creeping up on her. She took a deep breath as she tried to center herself again. She followed the team into the locker room. She blocked out the talk their coach was giving them, trying to get  into that mindset that she found in Sweden._

_The second half of starts again and this time they tried pressing even harder, trying to get a goal or any scoring opportunity. With 17 minutes left in the game, Kelley was given her 2nd yellow card, ejecting her from the game. Christen can feel the team shift now that their explosive forward was gone._

Okay, okay, _Christen thought to herself , trying to hype herself up. She was forced into a more attacking mode, more than the usual; she buries a shot but Ashlyn Harris saves it; she buries another but it was called offsides. She brings her fist down to her knee in frustration as the goal wasn’t allowed._

_When the whistle blows, Christen felt her shoulder slump. She felt the tears streaming down her face, knowing that this was her last shot at a NCAA title. She felt her knee buckle and she sat on the grass; trying not to give into the feeling of a failure. She looked up when she felt someone standing over her._

_Tobin holds out her hand for Christen to take. When she did, Tobin pulls her up and uses her momentum to draw her into a hug._

_“Congratulations,” Christen whispered to her, trying not to sniffle to hard. She really was happy for her best friend._

_“Good game, Cap,” Tobin said._

_Christen smiled at Tobin pulling out her nickname, knowing the only reason she pulled it out was because she was trying to make Christen feel better. She briefly squeezed Tobin, before pulling away. “Go celebrate. I’ll talk to you later?”_

_Tobin nodded and dropped a kiss on her forehead. “I love you.”_

_“I love you too and I’m so proud of you.”_

_Tobin went back to her teammates, jumping and yelling in excitement with them. Christen smiled watching her celebrate._

_“Well…” Kelley said, standing next to her. She swung an arm around Christen. “At least your boo won.”_

_Christen rolled her eyes and pushed Kelley away. “How many times do I have to tell you? We’re not together anymore.”_

_“Your eyes say something different,” Kelley told her tapping her on the back as they walked back to where their team was starting to congregate._

_They let themselves be drawn into the team hu huddle as their coach gave them one last pep talk._

_-_

_-_

_-_

_“What?” Tobin asked, confused. “But you just got back from Sweden.”_

_“I only came back for the season,” Christen told her. “I was always going to go back when the season ended.”_

_“That’s not fair!” Tobin cried out. “You said two semesters!”_

_“Tob-”_

_“No! You said two semesters and you’ll be back!” Tobin yelled at her, angry tears were in her eyes. “I just got you back! And now you’re leaving again?!”_

_“Tobin, please,” Christen pleaded, trying to calm the midfielder down._

_“No!” Tobin shouted before stomping out of Christen’s room in Palos Verdes._

_Christen slumped against her chair. She knew Tobin was not going to like that she was leaving again, but she didn’t know she was going to take it this badly. She looked over her window and she can see Tobin angrily kicking a ball against her garage door. Christen sighed in relief, knowing Tobin hasn’t left her house yet._

_She grabbed her phone off her desk and texted Kelley._

 

**_I  told her_ **

**_Was she mad?_ **

**_Yeah_ **

**_Really mad_ **

**_You should tell her why you’re leaving again_ **

**_I  can’t._ **

**_Okay._ **

_Christen was surprised when Kelley’s text come in without her trying to convince or nag her into telling Tobin. She pocketed her phone and looked over again to make sure Tobin was still  kicking balls at the garage door. She went downstairs and followed the sound of the ball hitting the metal door._

_“Hey, Chris. Can you tell Tobs to take it easy on our garage door? I don’t want to have to replace it again.,” her dad called out from the kitchen as she walked by._

_“Yeah daddy!” Christen shouted back as she opened the door._

_Tobin either didn’t hear the door open or she was purposely ignoring Christen as she continued to kick the shit out of her soccer ball, creating mini dents into the garage._

_“Dad says not to kick too hard, he doesn’t want to pay for a new door again,” Christen told her. “Not after Channing accidentally barrelled into it just two months ago.”_

_Tobin stopped the ball with her feet when it rolled back to her and picked it up. She walked away from Christen towards the beach, clutching her soccer ball tightly. Christen sighed and followed her, knowing she was going to go into their little cove._

_“Are you mad?” Christen asked her, her voice small and hesitant, not wanting to set her off again._

_Tobin sighed and shook her head. “No, I’m just sad that you’ll be gone again.”_

_“I’m going to come back Tobin,” Christen told her. “I won’t be gone forever.”_

_“It feels like forever and I don’t like it,” Tobin pouted.  “What does Sweden have that you keep going back there?”_

You’re here. _Christen thought. “I just it helps me get away from the pressure. Here I am Christen Press, breaking records, winning accolades, but never getting called up from the National Team. Over there I’m just Christen. I don’t have to be worried about letting the people I care about down because I can’t score in a fucking game or because I can’t be called to the National  Team no matter how hard I try. I  don’t have to feel like I’m being left behind.”_

_“Who’s leaving you behind?” Tobin asked, her head was tilted to the side, reminding her of a puppy confused._

_“You!” Christen said. “You’re going to great places Tobin. You’re already a regular call up for the national team, you’re about to graduate college, you have a girlfriend that you love and you’re an Olympic Gold Medalist. You’re the number one draft pick!” Christen listed, ignoring the scoffing of Tobin. “You’re leaving me behind. Sweden will help me feel like I’m not behind.”_

_“It’s not a competition,” Tobin told her. “I hate that you think that it’s a competition between you and I.” She rolled the soccer ball between her feet. “I feel like I’m the one catching up to you. Your this genius who basically graduated early and is now doing her masters while playing Pro in Sweden. It’s like your life is going 100mph but you don’t see it. The worst part is feeling like you’re always saying goodbye.”_

_Christen didn’t know what to say to that. She didn’t know, she wasn’t the only one that felt like that. She didn’t think that Tobin would feel how she feels right now; always feeling like you’re never enough. Then it slammed into her like a mack truck. She didn’t know Tobin anymore. The distance of Sweden was not only physical but it was also emotional. She didn’t like feeling of this at all. Not one bit._

_“Tobin,” Christen said, drawing her attention away from the soccer ball and back onto her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you felt like that.”_

_Tobin shrugged. “Yeah because you keep running away to Sweden.” She said it so matter-of-factly, like she was used to it that it made Christen stop her thoughts for a second._

_She said as if she was running away from_ her. _Which she really was at least her feelings for her._

_“It wouldn’t hurt to pick up your phone once in awhile you know,” Tobin said, turning away from her._

_Christen looked down, grabbing a handful of sand and letting it sift through her fingers. “I promise I’ll call more and talk to you more.”_

_The look that Tobin gave her was so mistrusting and skeptic that Christen felt ashamed that she had been neglecting her best friend, the love of her life for so long. She was so focused on herself that she failed to see the destruction she was leaving behind each time she decided to go to Sweden. She reached over and held Tobin’s hand, squeezing it, trying to convey to her how apologetic she was. “I’m not going to run away anymore._

_-_

_-_

_-_

Tobin’s eyes flutters open. She blinks, trying to adjust to the darkness as she peers around Christen’s room. She pulls herself out of Christen’s bed and goes to the closet. She digs around the closet, trying to find any shirt of her’s that Christen took from her last visit. She grabs an old t-shirt and leggings and changed into them in the bathroom.

She glances at the clock, her eyes widening at the time. She walks back into the bedroom to wake Christen up so that she can get ready for graduation. Her eyes catches something gold and red hanging of the shelf in the corner of the room.

Her eyes squints as she walks towards it, trying to decipher it. Her eyes widens as she grabs the medall from where it hangs. She fingers the red silk, tracing over the white lettering _of Beijing 2008_. She holds the medal in her hand, feeling the weight of it against her palm, remembering the exhilarating moment that made her an Olympic Gold Medalist.

-

-

-

_Tobin: Age 20_

_Christen: Age 19_

_“No I’m not taking this,” Christen insisted as she pushed Tobin’s hand back to her. “You earned it I’m not taking this away from you.”_

_“You’re not taking away anything from me,” Tobin told her as she grabbed Christen’s hand and drops the medal in her hand. She used her fingers to close Christen’s hand around the cool metal. “You’re not taking the experience of winning the gold medal, the pure joy, and utter exhilaration I felt. I just want to share it with you because you’re my best friend and I love you. And I know you’re in a rut and I want you to use this as one of your motivations.”_

_Christen stared at the gold medal in her hand, feeling the weight of it ground her._

_“And, hey when you win your own. Just give me yours,” Tobin said, shrugging._

_-_

_-_

_-_

Tobin puts the medal around her neck, enjoying the feeling of it once again. She didn’t regret giving it to Christen, especially since Christen told her once or twice that it actually helped her realize her dreams and that she can accomplish it too.

“Are you really wearing the medal right now?” Christen says from the bed, making Tobin jump. “Do you want it back?”

Tobin turns around and gives her a beaming smile. She jumps on the bed, jostling Christen a bit. She straddles Christen’s legs. “Nah, just reliving memories. I still can’t believe I’m an Olympic medalist.”

“A _gold_ medalist,” Christen corrects her, pride beaming from her eyes, her hands on Tobin's hips, caressing the sliver of skin. She grabs the silk, running it between her fingers. “I still can’t believe you gave this to me.”

Tobin shrugs. “It’s not like I wasn’t going to see it ever again. Not even when we broke up and you ran away here.” Christen flinches at her term and Tobin quickly corrects herself. “Which doesn’t matter now.”

Christen still looks unsettled. She knew their time apart after they blew up at each other at their cove was no longer as distant as it was before. Christen still harbored some guilt at the way she distanced herself from Tobin put their friendship at risk. But it brought them closer together and helped them get to where they are now.

-

-

-

_Tobin: Age 23_

_Christen: Age 22_

_Christen wrapped the scarf around her mouth, keeping her nose uncovered, but making sure the rest of her is covered. The one thing she misses living in California was the famous California weather. She misses the warm sun coupled with the nice ocean breeze, giving off a cooler atmosphere. She opened the door and cringed at the temperature, but she needed her caffeine and she needed it now. She quickly walked to the nearest coffee shop and breathed a sigh of relief when she got inside where warmth was._

_She was practicing her Swedish in her head hoping she doesn’t butcher the language enough that they can understand her order. When she got to the front, she tried to sound out the words, her tongue twisting in unfamiliar patterns. She gave them a shy, hesitant smile, but the barista seemed to understand him and tells her how much it is krona. She paid and found a table._

_Her phone suddenly rang in her hand with Tobin’s name flashing on her screen. Confused and worried, she quickly calculated the time difference. It was 3 AM in North Carolina, Tobin should still be asleep._

_“Tobin?” Christen asked as she answered the phone. The sob that answered her back made her worry spike even more. “Tobin?” She asked again, a little more urgently this time._

_“Chris, grandpa died this morning,” Tobin answered her, crying._

_Christen could feel her heartbreak for Tobin. She wasn’t particularly close to that side of Tobin’s family as they lived in New Jersey and they lived in California, but the Heaths usually go to New Jersey for the holidays. Tobin always talked about how awesome her grandpa was giving her fishing lessons and carpentry lessons._

_“He had a heart attack this morning and he died when they were taking him to the hospital,” Tobin told her._

_“Oh Tobin,” Christen said. “Tell me what I can do.”_

_“Can you come here?”_

_-_

_-_

_-_

_Christen took the earliest flight out there, arriving at New Jersey the next day, red-rimmed and exhausted. The moment she saw Tobin in her grandfather’s house, she grabbed her into a hug and didn’t let go as Tobin sobbed on her shoulder. Tobin eventually pulled away when they realized that they’ve been standing on the porch for the past 30 minutes now._

_Tobin grabbed her backpack from her, her suitcase already brought up by her brother and they didn’t even realize it. “C’mon, you must be exhausted, you want to take a nap?”_

_Christen nodded. She was tired. She followed Tobin to the room; realizing too late that they were sharing a room. She didn’t know whether to be happy or scared that she might give something away. Tobin tucked her into the bed and laid next to her._

_Tobin cuddled up to Christen, laying her head on her chest and an arm around her waist. Christen hugged Tobin to her, laying her head on top Tobin’s head, knowing that they both needed this for now._

_-_

_-_

_-_

_Christen stood behind Tobin holding her hand as different attendees of the funeral goes up to the family, giving them their well wishes and condolences. Christen focused on Tobin among the unfamiliar people milling about. She wanted to make sure that Tobin was good, physically. She knows emotionally, she can’t do anything about that. But making sure she’s hydrated, she’s eating, or she’s not cold or hot, Christen can do that._

_Christen squeezed Tobin’s hand twice, asking if she was alright. Tobin squeezed her hand, hard once. A hard no. Immediately Christen grabbed Tobin by the elbow and steered her away from the line. They go to the lobby of the funeral home where a small buffet with finger foods was laid out to the guests. Christen grabbed a plate and piled it on with Tobin’s favorite fruits._

_They sit at a corner away from curious eyes and Christen held out the plate for Tobin to munch on. Tobin immediately took a couple of bites of the fruit, needing something to take her mind off the depressing atmosphere._

_She looked up at Christen, who was watching her inhale her food. She reached up on her face self-consciously as Christen continued to gaze at her with a soft look in her eyes. “Do I have something in my face?”_

_“Yeah, your ugly mug,” Christen replied. Tobin stuck her tongue out at Christen, like the bratty kid she was. “Keep eating your fruit.”_

_Tobin rolled her eyes, but kept eating as Christen ordered. Once she cleared the plate, Christen threw the dish away. She went to Tobin and pulled her up. They looked over at where the viewing was and saw that the line of sympathizers are gone much to Tobin’s relief, but it also means it’s time to head over to the cemetery to bury him. Tobin grabbed Christen’s hand, squeezing it like it was her lifeline._

_They stood side by side, watching as the coffin was slowly lowered, people next to them crying. Tobin’s mom wailing her despair. Tobin held Christen’s hand, tightly squeezing it, using it to help her focus and try to block out the sounds of grief drifting around them. She stood silently next to Christen, her eyes were staring straight ahead not at the coffin but at the sun straight ahead._

_“Thank you for coming,” Tobin said to her later as they laid in bed, cuddled together, holding each other, afraid to let go._

_“Of course,” Christen replied as she continued to rub Tobin’s back. “You know if you need me, I’ll be there in a heartbeat. Well two heartbeats since Sweden is so far away.”_

_Tobin tucked her head under Christen’s chin, trying to be as close to the woman as possible. “I love you.”_

_“I love you too.”_

_It’s not until later that Christen realizes that_ she _wasn’t there. She found it odd that Tobin’s girlfriend wasn’t at her grandfather’s funeral. It’s not until later when she was talking to Kelley and asking if she knew why Tobin’s girlfriend wasn’t there. Even Kelley came for the funeral and she was at Stanford. Tobin’s girlfriend goes to UNC._

_“They broke up, Press,” Kelley told her, confused. “They haven’t been together since Beijing.”_

_-_

_-_

_-_

“How do I look?” Christen asks as she twirls in her graduation gown and cap with her regalia that shows she’s graduating with a Master’s.

“Sexy and scholarly,” Tobin tells her with a cheeky smirk.

Christen rolls her eyes as she says. “Thanks, I’m trying to look like I seduced my professor.”

Tobin laughs. “I’m kidding, babe. You look great. Very academic.”

Christen laughs. “Great. Hopefully I don’t butcher my Swedish in my speech.” She looks over at the paper that her speech was written on on her desk, making a face.

“You’re swedish is great!” Tobin says, trying to calm her nerves. “You’ve been here for four years, I’m sure you’re practically fluent by now!”

“I wish,” Christen says. “Alright, let’s go?”

“Let’s get your degree!”

-

-

-

Tobin sits in the stands, her chest puffs out proudly as she watches Christen give her speech. She can pick out different words, living with Christen in the off season had helped her pick up some of the language but not enough to understand it. Just certain phrases. Christen was doing a great job entertaining the crowd as they laugh throughout her speech. Tobin laughs along even though she has no clue what’s going on. When they call her name and she crosses the stage, Tobin, Kelley, and Christen’s family was the loudest one of them all, making Christen redden.

“So how does it feel like to be finally unemployed and overly qualified?” Kelley asks as they eat their dinner at Christen’s favorite restaurant in Sweden.

“Who says I’m unemployed?” Christen asks. “But I am overqualified.”

“So I hear another good news are in order?” Cody asks his daughter.

Christen nods before looking at Tobin and Kelley. “I got called up for the next camp.”

“What?!” Kelley asks before launching herself at Christen. “Oh my god! Are you serious?!”

Christen giggles and nods. “I’ll be with you guys at Florida.” Tobin whoops and gives her girlfriend a hug and chaste kiss. “I won’t be coming in until later though. I still need to finish off a couple of games for my club.”

“Still! This is awesome, Press!” Kelley says, practically yelling it at the quiet restaurant.

“You definitely earned it! You worked so hard,” Tobin tells her. “I’m so proud of you, baby!”

“Let’s have a toast!” Stacy says, grabbing her champagne flute. The others follow suit. “To a great year!” The others echoes the sentiment before clinking their glasses together or in KO and Tobin’s case, smashing the glasses together.

-

-

-

_Tobin: Age 23_

_Christen: Age 22_

_“I miss this California weather so much,” Christen said as she laid on a beach towel next to Tobin. She was dressed in shorts and a tanktop despite the fact that it was 60 degrees outside, hardly a shorts and tanktop._

_“Same,” Tobin said. “I do love the snow during the winter. White christmas and all.”_

_Christen’s nose wrinkled. “I think I’ve seen enough snow to last me a lifetime.”_

_Tobin laughed. She reached over and threw an arm around her shoulder. Tobin was overly touchy during this visit back to California. Tobin still hadn’t told her that she was no longer seeing somebody and Christen didn’t know how to feel about that. Was it because of Sweden or was it because she just didn’t feel like she didn’t deserve to know because her tendency to run away._

_“So I hear they’re forming a new league,” Christen said. “Are you going to be a part of it?”_

_Tobin nodded. “I kinda have too if I want to continue playing for the National Team.”_

_“What?” Christen asked, sitting up. “In order for you to play for the national team you have to be in the new league?”_

_Tobin nodded. “Yeah, they want to help grow the sport and all that…”_

_“I feel like that’s kind of wrong...but I understand,” Christen said slowly unsure of how Tobin is going to react._

_Tobin sighed. “Yeah, but I got an offer to play for another club.”_

_“What club?”_

_“PSG,” Tobin said quietly._

_“France?” Christen asked, surprised that she was even considering it. Tobin loves being in the US._

_“Yeah,” Tobin said. “And you know what, Chris? I’m actually considering taking it.”_

_“But that means you can’t play for the national team,” Christen pointed out._

_Tobin shrugged. “But I’ll be closer to you.”_

_“But you’ll be farther away from her,” Christen said, finding an opening in their conversation. She watched as the emotions flitted across Tobin’s face. She flinched, then she made a confused face, before realizing that she never actually told Christen that they broke up. “I was wondering when you were going to tell me.”_

_“I really didn’t think it would matter,” Tobin said quietly. She shrugged. “It wasn’t a big deal. We just had a falling out and we mutually decided it was better to break up.”_

_“Tobin, you went out with her for two years,” Christen said. “That’s not nothing.”_

_Tobin blew out a breath, frustratedly. “And in that two years? You know what I learned? Nothing will ever compare to what we had! In that two years, I realized that you were it for me! In that two years, I had to learn that my best friend, the love of my life will never love me back so why try?”_

_“Tobin…” Christen whispered, shocked at the words coming out of her mouth. She truly thought that Tobin was happy and in love. The only reason she survived in Sweden without her knowing that she had someone by her side that made her endlessly happy and content._

_“Why, Christen? Why wasn’t I enough?” Tobin asked, tears welling up in her eyes._

_“Tobin, no,” Christen said, her voice was gentle and crooning, trying not to escalate the situation. “No...no...you were enough...more than enough...I...I wanted to tell you our junior year that I thought breaking up was the worst thing that could’ve done for us, but by then...you were happy with her...I didn’t want to break it up…”_

_“So you didn’t ask me?” Tobin asked, confused. “You could’ve asked me. You had a lot of opportunities to ask Press!”_

_Christen flinched. “I know...I know...I thought I was too late.”_

_Tobin laughed, but it sounded warm to Christen’s ears. “Too late? Christen, you could’ve asked me as I was walking down the aisle preparing to marry her and I still would’ve said yes. You’re it for me...I don’t know how I can get that through your thick and stubborn head…”_

_She can feel the tears streaming down her face at Tobin’s declaration. Christen didn’t know what to say. So she did the only thing that she knew would convey her feelings correctly. She leaned over and pressed her lips against Tobin, pouring out all her frustration, anger, and confusion into the kiss. But also letting the overwhelming feelings of affection, yearning, and love that she’s had for her out._

_Christen moaned into the kiss as Tobin reciprocated, letting her tongue slowly, languidly stroked hers, taking her time into exploring Christen’s lips and mouth. Tobin controlled the pace. She let the kiss die into little pecks before pulling away. Her eyes slowly opened meeting Christen’s grey eyes._

_“Is that what I think it means?” Tobin asked, gazing into her eyes, trying to find a hint of doubt or hesitation but all Tobin could see is the blinding love Christen has for her._

_“I’m sorry,” Christen apologized. “I’m sorry...I should’ve said something sooner.”_

_“You think?” Tobin asked, sarcastically. Christen glared at her. “We could’ve saved all this heartache and also money. Flying back and forth was a bitch for both of us.”_

_Christen laughed. “Yeah, but we got to experience different countries.”_

_“True,” Tobin said. She sighed. “So what does this mean?”_

_“Well, I still have a year left of my Master’s and I still have another season with Tyreso,” Christen told her. “Do you think we can make it for two years. Long distance again?”_

_Tobin nodded. “We’re not the same people we were four years ago, Christen. I have no doubt we can make it.”_

_“How can you even be sure about that?” Christen asked._

_“Because I don’t see myself letting you go anytime soon, do you?”_

_-_

_-_

_-_

“I have another good news,” Christen says to Tobin as they lay in bed, naked and intertwined, celebrating Christen’s call up and graduation. “Well I don’t really know if it’s good news or not.”

“Did Tyreso offer to extend your contract?” Tobin asks. It took her awhile to realize that Christen loves Sweden and that she would play for her current club for forever if they let her.

Christen shakes her head.

“Aww, babe, I’m sorry, I know how much you love Tyreso,” Tobin tells her, lightly scratching the skin of her stomach.

“Yeah, but I’m happy about not being able to re-sign with Tyreso,” Christen says.

“Oh yeah, why is that?”

“I got offered a contract for the Red Stars,” Christen tells her. She feels Tobin stiffen behind her before Tobin was hugging her to her tightly again.

“Are you serious?!” Tobin asks, excitement high in her voice. “Please don’t joke with me now, Chris. It’s not funny if this is a joke.”

“I’m not joking,” Christen says. “I’ve already signed the papers and I’m heading over there in a couple of weeks for preseason.” Christen plays with Tobin’s fingers on her stomach. “I know it’s still long distance, but…”

Tobin laughs in joy, feeling her heart was full compared to the rather empty feeling she feels when she has to say goodbye to Christen. “I don’t care! At least it’s the same country. I mean different timezones, but it won’t be as far as another continent!”

Christen smiles at her joy. It was infectious. “Wanna help me furnish my apartment in Chicago?”

“Well, no…” Tobin says, dreading the furniture shopping date that Christen loves to go on. She was the one that furnished Tobin’s apartment in Portland. “But I’ll go with you because I love you.”

Christen smacks her lip against her cheek. “Well, that’s the right answer.”

-

-

-

_Tobin: Age 12_

_Christen: Age 11_

_“I don’t think I can live anywhere else,” Christen admits as they lay side by side on their favorite blue and green beach towel after a day of body surfing, sand castle making, and hermit crab hunting._

_“I don’t know…” Tobin says as she stares up at the cloudless California sky. “Don’t you want to explore the world?”_

_Christen shrugs. “Yeah, but I also love California too much to go anywhere else.”_

_“Paris kind of looks cool,” Tobin tells her. “We should visit that place and go to the Eiffel Tower!”_

_“That sounds like a solid plan,” Christen says. “But it’s the City of Romance. You’re supposed to visit it with someone you love.”_

_Tobin shrugs. “You’re my best friend and I love you.”_

_Christen rolls her eyes. “Not like that Tobin. But like someone you want to hold hands with and hug and love and kiss. You don’t want to kiss me, Tobin.”_

_Tobin makes a face at her suggestion. “That’s true, but who else am I supposed to go with?”_

_Christen contemplates it for a second. “Someone you would want to marry, obviously.”_

_Tobin nods. “Okay. So what if when we turn 26 and 25 and we’re not with anyone that we want to marry, we go to Paris together?”_

_Christen laughs. “And what? Get married?” She continues to laugh and when Tobin didn’t laugh with her, she looks at Tobin with her eyes wide._

_“Yeah,” Tobin answers as if it was obvious. “You’re my best friend. If we like each other now. We’ll like each other then. I can’t imagine living with my best friend and hating it.”_

_“True,” Christen says. “You’re right. We should commemorate this with something.”_

_Tobin looks around trying to find a ring to give to Christen. When she couldn’t find anything, she wanders over to the surf, picking up a couple of shells.  “Choose which one is the prettiest.”_

_Christen picks a pink and orange angel wing shell that was attached together. She hands it over to Tobin._

_“Perfect,” Tobin says, breaking the shell in half. “I guess we should exchange shells?”_

_“Vows,” Christen tells her, holding the seashell in one hand. “You go first.”_

_“I, Tobin, promise you, Christen, that when we’re old at 26, we will go to Paris and marry each other. Because I love you and you’re my best friend.”_

_“I, Christen, promise you, Tobin, than when I turn 25, that we’ll marry each other and go to Paris. Because you’re my best friend and I love you.”_

_The two exchange shells and Christen looks at Tobin. “Now what?”_

_Tobin shrugs as she rubs the smooth shell with her thumb. “I think we’re supposed to kiss to make it official.”_

_They stare at each other before shaking their heads._

_“Ew.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So with the way, I ended it. There is a chance of another chapter and I think you guys can see what that chapter will be (here's a hint, it'll have something to do with the seashells). But I'm not sure yet.Thank you for all the comments and all the kudos that you guys left with this story. I'm glad that I was finally able to complete my first story. Also there was a lot of unused flashbacks in this, especially when they were little kids. If you guys want I can post some of them, but it'll probably be sporadically and no guarantees. But for now I'm going to mark it as complete.
> 
> Please leave a comment or kudos or drop a message on my Tumblr, if you want. I hope you guys enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this!
> 
> P.S. Sorry for the long note and if you actually read this note then you are awesome!

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr: 12percentofmoments


End file.
